The "Social Distancing" Run

 

Back in March when the world shut down and we shut ourselves away, I knew we would need as many things at our disposal to keep things fun and interesting for our 5 year old. We’ve done lots of crafts, baking, fort-making and board games, but I also wanted to do something special. She loves to race, and has done two 1 kilometre races so far, and I found a really fun virtual run that we could do as a family and also serve as a happy memory in this very trying time. Plus the medal itself is pretty funny: people wearing masks, holding toilet paper and hand sanitiser while being chased by a large corona virus particle.

 

It took a while to actually receive the medal as it was coming from the Marathon Training Academy in the U.S.  While they were shipped out at the end of May, it took almost 2 months to receive it and then we were hit with a heat wave which stalled our start date.

 

Cilla’s ‘training’ was very much Cilla-inspired. Mostly it involved her running around the kitchen island for about 20 minutes. She would also go downstairs with mommy (I had long given up on the treadmill and only run outdoors) and while mommy did her runs on the treadmill, Cilla would dance/run on the spot while singing her heart out to the tunes that were being played. We also took her to a nearby track and ran laps with her a few times. We didn’t take training too seriously—the whole point was her to have something fun to do and feel really good about accomplishing something she worked hard for.

 

At 9am on Sunday August 23, we headed to the trail in Taylor Creek where we were to run the distance of 3 kilometres, the furthest Cilla has run so far. It was the perfect distance as it would be a challenge without feeling out of reach.  We don’t run very often together as our paces are very different so for obvious reasons, Cilla would be pacing this “race.”

 

It wasn’t too hot yet, but at 28 degrees it still was pretty warm, and we were all sweating within minutes. Cilla was very excited and kept telling us, “I’m going to win.” Unfortunately within minutes of her starting she got a side-stitch and had to stop and walk while it resolved itself. Once it was gone she took off, much to the amusement of many people we passed on the trail. Her smiles were very contagious to others around her.

 

At one point she stopped and said, “I can’t do it,” and we had to encourage her to keep moving even if she just walked. She only needed a quick reprieve however and as she took off again, her pace was a speedy 6.30 km pace. When I went to give her more words of encouragement she waved me off saying, “can’t talk, running.”

 

Cilla reached the finish line first at the time of 26:20 and an average pace of 8:43 km. She was very excited to have beaten mommy and mama, and exclaimed, “I won the race!! I want to race again,” but settled for a piggy-back ride back home instead.

 

It was a fun way to spend a Sunday morning and it was rewarding to see Cilla push herself to achieve something for the first time. What's that saying? A family that runs together, stays together.