Groundhog Recap- By Joshua Holloway

January 30, 2011  (Ed note: written by my 8 year old nephew, very proud of him)

TRR Groundhog Team

Today I ran my first 5k with my Uncle Chris and my mom.  I was wearing my new Thunder Road Racing shirt (TRR rocks).  We ran in an underground tunnel, which was like a small city.  It was a Groundhog Race – there was a 5k and a 10k.  My Uncle Chris, Aunt Jaime, and Scott ran the 10k, too.  It was my Aunt Jaime’s first 10k and she did a good job.  On the way to the race I set some goals with my Aunt Jaime helping me…my good goal was to finish the race, my better goal was to finish in 45 minutes, and my best goal was to run the whole race or finish in less than 45 minutes. 

Groundhog 2011

I think it was 65 degrees and it was kind of dark.  We saw a lot of businesses that I recognized like:  Fed Ex, the U.S. Postal Service, and the Hallmark Warehouse.  There were a lot of people – 3,500 people running the races.  It was kinda scary in the beginning when we started the race.  I held my mom and Uncle Chris’s hands until we found some space to run.  We ran 20 minutes before I needed to walk.  We had two water stops in the race.  At mile number two my mom ran to the finish line by herself – leaving me with my Uncle Chris.  Uncle Chris and I dumped water on our heads at the second water table.  It was one of my favorite parts of the race.  Uncle Chris told me, “We will finish this race together!”  We started to run and then the finish line came quick.  At the end we ran our fastest to cross the finish line…it felt good to cross the line and hear them say my name over the speaker.  My dad, mom, crazy sister, Sophia, and Uncle Chris all hugged me.  Then Scott, Suzy, Rachel, and Aunt Jaime all said, “Congrats!”   I did finish the race in 45 minutes.  It was a fun experience! 

Steph Holloway, Chris Thomas, Joshua Holloway

I was tired after the race.  I fell asleep on our way home from KC.  I need to train more before I do another 5k, but I am going to do a mile fun run with my mom and sister in Emporia in March.  It’s a benefit for Girl Scouts – “Thin Mint Sprint”!