Cheryl "OFFICIALLY" Completes The "OFFICIAL" Kewash Half-Marathon.

 What an Awesome day!  Cool temps, low wind, and bright sunshine made for a perfect day for a race.  Today was the Official Kewash Half-Marathon.  We have been running the Kewash trail for over 5 years now, but this is the first time Cheryl has run the race that they throw there.  Normally, she does not want to "waste her time" running a race that we run all summer long.   I mean,  what could the race possibly offer us that we have not already seen? 

about 50% mask wearers

That was before the Pandemic.  After over a year of no racing,   suddenly the Kewash Hal-Marathon looks much more appealing.  It is close.. ( Washington, Iowa.) It is familiar, and it was a low cost, low stakes race to see how things are working out now that the nation has "Pandemic Fatigue"   Or as I would like to call it: "Having our fill of Tyranny."

One of the first things we noted was the requirement of the masks.   There were none!   The web page said you were "welcome to wear a mask if you wanted to."  And left it at that.

BEER!

  A pretty good start.   Second!  There was going to be BEER! 

Now before you think I have a drinking problem,  let me explain the meaning of that statement.   "One Free Beer" means: An event for Adults.   That there will be an "After Party" complete with a goodie bag, award ceremony,  and all of the "normal crowd-pleasing activities" that races usually have.  Spectators were allowed!   Cheering was encouraged!   The National Anthem was SUNG!  ( And by a decent singer, I might add.)  There were flags, there was music,  there were odd people of all shapes, sizes, and age groups dressed in a rainbow kaleidoscope of colors.   In short:  It was a Welcome sense of Normalcy.  I never knew how much I had missed the racing events, until we did this one.   (And I'm not even a runner!)  Over the past year,  cancellations, and draconian rules and restrictions have made any hope of future racing seem bleak.   I'm so thrilled that Washington, Iowa has bucked the trend and gotten the race culture back up and running. 

After the start, I raced off to mile 2...  The parking place where Cheryl and I used to park the Subie.   One of the perks of this race was that we were very familiar with the course.   It was an  "Out and Back" course along the trail.   The turnaround was about a mile from West Chester.   At each of the spectator spots I had chose  for my picture taking,  there were other cheer leaders and water stops.   At mile 2,  a bunch of girls has set up a "girl Power" section.    Complete with Tutus, Paper signs, Music, Dancing, and Bubbles!  Cheryl looks like a rock star  surrounded by screaming fans as she ran through them. 

At mile 5,  I was not alone once again.   They had set up another water stop and more spectators came to cheer on their individual runners.   A Small note about the types of people who show up to races.   Every race has that nice old lady who dresses in an "odd" outfit and cheers on the runners.   

The Happy Lady in a Bee suit.

She is located away from the start/finish line and is always happy.  She enjoys  cheering for a legion of total strangers as they race by.   Sometimes she has a runner she is looking for.  Sometimes she is simply helping as a volunteer.   The person might change, but the character is always present at aver race.   I was please to have captured her in one of the photos today.    She is the one wearing the Bee-keeper suit  waving the cow bells.   I miss people like her and the small pleasant atmosphere that person  brings to the race. 

The cool part of an out and back course is that I could stand in place and get Cheryl coming and going.  After she turned around, I snapped more shots and hen raced back to mile 2 before heading back to the start/finish line.   It was similar to the Red Shoe Half Marathon and the Quad City Marathon in that I knew where I was going and how to get there.   Such a relief!   In fact, the time flew by so fast, it seemed like I was at the Finish line in record time. 

A race volunteer gave Cheryl the Finisher's Medal and Cheryl picked up her treat bag.   Her time was consistent with her "average" Half marathon and she came in 3rd in her age group. 

No award this race.

(Fairly typical)  She was worried that, after all that time off,  she would have a poor showing, but no...   Looks like she is just a little rusty.  Nothing a little 2019 training couldn't fix!

We grabbed Cheryl's beer and sat down on a curb and talked about how the race went.   It was a fun time  and I had forgotten how much I missed it.  We  thanked the Race Director and decided to celebrate at Tee's

  Tee's...  Is located in Muscatine.   For those of you who do not live in Iowa.  Muscatine is about 40 miles away from Washington.   We could have had lunch and Ice cream in Washington... IF we actually knew the area.  ( We rarely visit Washington...)    So Off to Tee's for our Celebratory Meal!   Cheryl got an Peanut Parfait and I got my typical Burger and fries.   It was all good. 

So what is the take away?  Well, I certainly hope racing will be back on.  I'm "OK" with it not being like 2019.  This particular race seemed very similar to the Lincoln Half Marathon we do in Springfield, Illinois.  I would be happy with a few half-ers in the spring and fall. Maybe a smaller Marathon outside the big cities....  Until those cities Finally stop rioting and burning.   I took a few crowd shots to show that the Mask rate was about 50/50... at first!   AFTER the race, the ratio was skewed to the mask-less side.   And DURING the race.. NO ONE ran with a mask on.   Turns out...despite the propaganda,  Masks DO hinder your breathing.    I have to fight the urge to go off on a soap box, but let me just say,   I think running is a healthy activity.  Sick people do not like  to run.  Outdoor activity is more healthy than staying inside listing to fear outlets.    Ok... I'll stop ranting now. 

Cheryl's America!  "Banzai!"

In short.   FUN!  So fun for me... who does not run.  Fun for Cheryl, who has been itching to race for over a year now.   And by the looks of the crowd,  Fun for everyone else. Cheryl says it will be the "Runner's"  who will bring back this country.   Events, Festivals, Fairs, Traditions, and just a sprinkle of Patriotism will bring us back to where we were in 2019.   It might a few months, And maybe a few Holidays, but I feel optimistic. And that is something that has certainly been missing in my world view after 2020.  

I hope everyone else had a wonderful day where ever you might be.   Maybe you had as much fun BBQ-ing in your back yard or breaking out those gardening tools.   Being outside on a wonderful day is key to staying healthy...  and in some cases: Being  ALIVE!    Thanks for stopping in!