I write this on my bed after the most amazing body and mind experience ever. I woke up at 03:30am ( on a Saturday of all days) started my 10k Vital Winelands Marathon race at 06:05am in Stellenbosch and was finished at about 07:35am. I did all of this while the world was snugged up in bed and only a few brave or stupid people like me where up to brave the chilly morning.
This race was by far the most difficult and gruelling of the ones I have ran. I thought the previous one was but, this one took the cake and it smashed it. It was treacherous uphills and downhills that tested your human brakes and some long flats. What made it even more of a challenge was the weather, the where points in the race where it just rained like it wasn't going to stop.
The relationship between the body and the mind was tested many times during the race. The body screaming and almost begging to stop and the mind pleading with the body to hold on for one more kilometer.
The were two things I learnt from this race. The first is that I need to train more. If I could do as well as I did with the little preparation I did then, I could actually kill the next race. The other thing is that the are no limits to what the body and the mind can do. The were times when I wanted to give up because I was just too tired and the rain was beating on my body so hard but, I didn't. It was constant communication between my body and mind and the sick excitement of what the next up hill and down hill can bring.
As Lady Gaga's applause played towards the finish line I smiled. I was was so happy and already planning for my next run. I guess the running bug has bitten and I'm all in now.
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