iRun @ Apple '05



Another year, another iRun. It should have been another win, but alas my body is still recovering from a nasty cold that caught me off guard Tuesday of this week. With 80% strength, I took out the 5k race at a quick clip, eager to see if any other Apple employees would be foolish enough to stick with me. Sure enough, there's always a guy who thinks he's top dog. Only this guy was Mike Kreige, the man that finished behind me last year and vowed to train vigorously to recapture the coveted iRun championship. A win in the iRun doesn't come with any gifts, plagues, or ribbons. Instead it comes with the bragging rights within the confines of Apple Computer for a full 365 days.

Well, two miles in to the race, after having traded the lead several times, Mike broke away from me and quickly built up a 10 meter lead. It was at that point that my body said "what the %#@& were you thinking?" and shut-down. Despite my body giving in, I was able to cruise in comfortably with a second place time of 17:31, 16 seconds behind Mike who finished in 17:15.

As an aside, the race was started by USA Track and Field star Nicole Teter , member of the Nike Farm Team in Palo Alto, CA and a participant in the 2004 Olympic games in Athens. Prior to the race I had a chance to talk to her. She's pretty cool and down to earth and let me in on the Nike Farm Team "dish." Apparently, the Nike Farm Team is structured very similar to cross country at the collegiate level; runners have access to great doctors, receive equipment, traveling expenses and meal money. At the moment, only 40 runners are affiliated with the Farm Team. If I didn't have to pay bills and could drop 2 minutes from my 10k, I'd try to join in a heart beat!

Posted: Fri - November 5, 2004 at 01:39 PM        

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