Currently, it's: "How many states do I have left to cover?"
Yes, indeedy, I did another race!
Let me tell you a little about Fayetteville, Tennessee: It's the seat of Lincoln County, in Middle Tennessee, established in 1809, 85 miles SSE of Nashville and 25 miles north of Huntsville, AL. Moore County, where one can find Lynchburg and the home of Jack Daniels Tennessee Whiskey, is the next county over and just a short drive away. Fayetteville's population, according to the abovelinked municipal website: 7007. One of those people is my Aunt Kate.
My dad grew up in Fayetteville, along with his three siblings. Their mom grew up here, too, and her parents. In fact, four of my great-great-grandparents are buried in Rose Hill Cemetary. I've spent school vacations and family trips visiting here throughout my life, and although my "Ole Dad" never missed an opportunity to call me a Yankee, it's safe to say the Elk River metaphorically runs through my veins. (And every time I visit, I make sure some caffeine from the Elk River Coffee Company literally runs through my veins.)
Since retiring back to Fayetteville several years ago, Kate has volunteered her time in a lot of organizations in the community, one of which is the Imagination Library. The original Imagination Library project was started by Dolly Parton, to support early literacy and access to books for children in her home county in East Tennessee. The project has been a great success, and she has shared the model with communities throughout Tennessee and the rest of the country, as well as in the UK and Canada. Each chapter is locally funded, however, which is how we get back to the subject of yesterday's race.
Yesterday was the third annual Imagination Library 5k Run and 1 mi Walk, supporting the Imagination Library of Lincoln County. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, with clear, blue skies and temperatures (at race time) in the upper 60s/low 70s fahrenheit. The start and finish were located in Stone Bridge Park:
The replica bridge was built in June, 2000, according to the plaque. |
All of that considered, I was ready for an underwhelming race performance. It's taken me over half an hour to finish a 5k race before, and if that was to be my fate again, I was resigned to it. But that isn't to say I was going to give up before I started.
In fact, and I couldn't tell you exactly why (except that I'm still getting good returns on Coach Adam's advice), I had a pretty good run! The course was pretty easy, with just a few relatively gentle hills, and we passed right in front of Kate's house around the 1.9 mi mark, which was exactly when I needed to see my cheering section.
1/2 of the non-human portion of my cheering section, photographed before the race. |
Many thanks to Tom Wallace for this photo! |
Kate and Juliet came and met me at the park, shortly after I crossed the finish line. |
Eugene for coffee at, you guessed it, Elk River Coffee Company.
The rest of the day was pretty much about napping. And some excellent vegetable biryani for lunch, which Kate had picked up for me the previous night at Sitar in Huntsville, while they were waiting for my flight.
So, my friends, that's eight down, forty-two to go, and I believe I'm done for 2012. But stay tuned, because I'm seriously considering starting off 2013 with a race in Jacksonville on Saturday, January 5 (currently still shows the 2012 date, but their calendar gives the 2013 date).
Darling Girl! Your posting makes our small town sound so inviting, and I appreciate your taking the time to write to your blog and to give shout-outs to some of the town activities and sponsors of our efforts. As you know, I say that every small town has the 501.C3 "fundraiser of the week" and I'm glad you decided to participate in our truly worthwhile Imagination Library big, annual, primary fundraiser which is supported by everyone in Lincoln County, Tennessee. Please come back next year.
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