The first organized race I ever ran was the Cowtown 10k in February 2002. I trained in the awesome park by my new apartment in Euless. My new girlfriend, Jenny, came to cheer me on. I had no idea how much traffic the event would draw, so we got stuck in traffic and arrived late for the race. Then I got confused regarding the starting point and accidentally started on the separate 5k. Eventually I found the 10k course, jogged past all the walkers (since the runners had already turned around for the return leg), foolishly pushed through some nasty knee pain, and reached the finish line to find Jenny waiting for me. I’m pretty sure I covered at least 10k, but I don’t really know how much I actually ran since I didn’t follow a real course.

Eight years later, my running is going well, and I’m excitedly planning my next 10k. It’s a less popular distance, but I managed to find one: the Liberty 5k / 10k / 1 Mile Fun Run in The Colony on July 3. This time I’ll still be with that Jenny girl from the first race, but she’ll be staying home with our children, and I hope to start on the correct course. =)