Friday, July 31, 2009
Run Away Queen
July 22, 2009 - Minneapolis Aquatennial Torchlight 5K
I was asked to sing the National Anthem at the Lifetime Fitness Torchlight 5k, a portion of the proceeds benefits Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare. I was excited to be a part of this event, and kick off the run!
Now I work out, but I have not gone running in quite some time, (I pulled my hamstring in the spring and have been resting it) although I am always up for the challenge! Oh then I was asked if I could run in my crown and sash….
The traffic getting to the race was crazy and it took my mom and me quite some time to find a parking spot to meet up with the two guys, Bryon and Marzol who were in charge. When we did hook up they took great care of me, getting my race number, t-shirt and walked me to the starting line of the race.
I had thought this all out, I was going to sing the National Anthem, then take a few minutes to take the crown off and get ready to run. Once the HUGE crowd had started to die out (there were over 5,000 people running) I would jump in and begin to run. Well of course things did not go according to plan...
Before I sang the National Anthem I met Staci (as in Moon and Staci of KS95!!!) She attempted to run away with my crown, that is the second time in the past month someone has tried to steal the crown! I really need security.
As soon as I was done singing the National Anthem, the race began! After taking a few running photos with the crown on I quickly took my crown and sash off and handed them to my mom, and then I started to run.
About 2 minutes into my run I realized that I did not grab a hair binder, I still had my warm up on, and I had no cell phone!!!! I definitely had the windblown hair look going for me, and there were a lot of shouts out from the crowd that I had the best race hair. As for the warm up jacket, let’s just say I burned twice as many calories than the other runners.
Now the cell phone part…. Not good. I finished the race in… drum roll please….. TWENTY TWO MINUTES AND THIRTY TWO SECONDS. I was hoping for less than thirty, I guess I underestimated my ability! Once I finished they told all the runners to keep walking to leave room for everyone. At this point I had no idea how I was going to meet up with my mom, who was driving from the start of the race to the end.
After about 10 minutes of recovering from my run, I had no idea where I was. I learned back when I was 5 years old on what to do when you are lost. I found the information booth! I asked to use a cell phone and called my mom. Of course as soon as I made the call a band started to play in the background. As I yelled into the phone that I was at the corner of Power and Merriman, I only hoped that my mom knew what I was saying. After another 10 minutes and still no mom, I did the second thing I was taught at age 5, find a police officer. Unfortunately this police officer did not have a cell phone on him. As I was wandering around I was approached by a family that recognized me from the start of the race when I sang the National Anthem. As they took pictures of me with their cell phone, I asked if I was able to borrow it to call my mom. After about 5 attempts I finally got a hold of her and we decided to meet back at the finish line.
Please enjoy the first ever: Miss Minnesota’s MOM Blog:
So here it is the Mom blog, the real story of what it takes to be the chaperone of Miss Minnesota.
First I have learned while driving with Miss Minnesota, she doesn’t give the MapQuest directions fast enough. I hear “Oh you were supposed to go left!” After I have gone right, this is not good when you are in downtown rush hour traffic.
Rule number 1. The job of a chaperone is to remain calm no matter what happens.
This is sometimes hard to do when the person you are suppose to chaperone decides to take off running in a crowd of 5,000 runners and you have no way of contacting her.
Rule number 2. Have MapQuest directions, a map and a GPS in your car for unexpected road construction and closed off roads.
After packing up the crown, sash and camera I headed back to the parking garage to drive to the end of the race. Simple right! Just follow the direction we printed out from Map Quest to the end of the race. I put the address into the GPS and as I pull out of the parking garage I wait for the satellite signal to give me directions. Waiting, waiting, waiting, car behind me beeping and wants me to move so I turn in the direction I came. OOPs that has now become the parade route and is closed.
After several turns and directions given by GPS and Police I think I am going the right way when I hear the GPS telling me to turn on 2nd street, well this street is closed for construction. Then it tells me to turn around as if I miss the street, so I continue to see if it comes up with another route. I start to feel as if the GPS is now mocking me saying recalculating, recalculating, over and over. I am starting to sense an angry tone to the sound of the voice as I keep checking direction trying to find the end of the race.
After 30 minutes trying to find my way using the GPS I stopped and looked at the race map and tried to find this the old fashion way by asking someone! Directed to go over the bridge to Harriett Island I could now see the runners in the distant and just decided to find a place to park and walk over to the finish line.
Walking around seeing all the runners I realize there was no way I would find (Brooke) Miss Minnesota. So I was just about to walk back to my car when I got the first phone call from her. I could not hear very well because there was a Band playing and all I heard was that she was by a tent and a street named How and Merriam. So I did what I taught my children, I went to a Police Officer and asked where was How and Merriam? He had a map and said there are no streets that started with H (How) but that Merriam Street was on the corner. So I waited by the corner as hundreds of runners went by. I tried calling back the number that Miss Minnesota called from, no answer. OK, so back to rule number 1, stay calm. What else did she say, a tent, ok so there was a tent by the finish line I will go back there and look for her? Now it was starting to get dark and I was getting a little worried, those thoughts start to come into your head as a parent that you have lost your child and panic was starting to set in, when I got the second phone call from her.
This time I could hear her, we had a plan to meet at the finish line, where the red and blue balloon arch was. Relief! As I stood next to the arch waiting, the race organizers start to deflate the balloon arch, but when I looked up I heard a familiar voice it was Brooke, Miss Minnesota.
She was excited about her race time and wondering where I had been all this time. I just smiled and said I was here waiting for you.
Rule number 3. Never let your Queen out of your sight without a chaperone.
Next Appearance: Miss Frazee Pageant. I think my Dad is going to accompany me on this one!
Always,
Brooke
I was asked to sing the National Anthem at the Lifetime Fitness Torchlight 5k, a portion of the proceeds benefits Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare. I was excited to be a part of this event, and kick off the run!
Now I work out, but I have not gone running in quite some time, (I pulled my hamstring in the spring and have been resting it) although I am always up for the challenge! Oh then I was asked if I could run in my crown and sash….
The traffic getting to the race was crazy and it took my mom and me quite some time to find a parking spot to meet up with the two guys, Bryon and Marzol who were in charge. When we did hook up they took great care of me, getting my race number, t-shirt and walked me to the starting line of the race.
I had thought this all out, I was going to sing the National Anthem, then take a few minutes to take the crown off and get ready to run. Once the HUGE crowd had started to die out (there were over 5,000 people running) I would jump in and begin to run. Well of course things did not go according to plan...
Before I sang the National Anthem I met Staci (as in Moon and Staci of KS95!!!) She attempted to run away with my crown, that is the second time in the past month someone has tried to steal the crown! I really need security.
As soon as I was done singing the National Anthem, the race began! After taking a few running photos with the crown on I quickly took my crown and sash off and handed them to my mom, and then I started to run.
About 2 minutes into my run I realized that I did not grab a hair binder, I still had my warm up on, and I had no cell phone!!!! I definitely had the windblown hair look going for me, and there were a lot of shouts out from the crowd that I had the best race hair. As for the warm up jacket, let’s just say I burned twice as many calories than the other runners.
Now the cell phone part…. Not good. I finished the race in… drum roll please….. TWENTY TWO MINUTES AND THIRTY TWO SECONDS. I was hoping for less than thirty, I guess I underestimated my ability! Once I finished they told all the runners to keep walking to leave room for everyone. At this point I had no idea how I was going to meet up with my mom, who was driving from the start of the race to the end.
After about 10 minutes of recovering from my run, I had no idea where I was. I learned back when I was 5 years old on what to do when you are lost. I found the information booth! I asked to use a cell phone and called my mom. Of course as soon as I made the call a band started to play in the background. As I yelled into the phone that I was at the corner of Power and Merriman, I only hoped that my mom knew what I was saying. After another 10 minutes and still no mom, I did the second thing I was taught at age 5, find a police officer. Unfortunately this police officer did not have a cell phone on him. As I was wandering around I was approached by a family that recognized me from the start of the race when I sang the National Anthem. As they took pictures of me with their cell phone, I asked if I was able to borrow it to call my mom. After about 5 attempts I finally got a hold of her and we decided to meet back at the finish line.
Please enjoy the first ever: Miss Minnesota’s MOM Blog:
So here it is the Mom blog, the real story of what it takes to be the chaperone of Miss Minnesota.
First I have learned while driving with Miss Minnesota, she doesn’t give the MapQuest directions fast enough. I hear “Oh you were supposed to go left!” After I have gone right, this is not good when you are in downtown rush hour traffic.
Rule number 1. The job of a chaperone is to remain calm no matter what happens.
This is sometimes hard to do when the person you are suppose to chaperone decides to take off running in a crowd of 5,000 runners and you have no way of contacting her.
Rule number 2. Have MapQuest directions, a map and a GPS in your car for unexpected road construction and closed off roads.
After packing up the crown, sash and camera I headed back to the parking garage to drive to the end of the race. Simple right! Just follow the direction we printed out from Map Quest to the end of the race. I put the address into the GPS and as I pull out of the parking garage I wait for the satellite signal to give me directions. Waiting, waiting, waiting, car behind me beeping and wants me to move so I turn in the direction I came. OOPs that has now become the parade route and is closed.
After several turns and directions given by GPS and Police I think I am going the right way when I hear the GPS telling me to turn on 2nd street, well this street is closed for construction. Then it tells me to turn around as if I miss the street, so I continue to see if it comes up with another route. I start to feel as if the GPS is now mocking me saying recalculating, recalculating, over and over. I am starting to sense an angry tone to the sound of the voice as I keep checking direction trying to find the end of the race.
After 30 minutes trying to find my way using the GPS I stopped and looked at the race map and tried to find this the old fashion way by asking someone! Directed to go over the bridge to Harriett Island I could now see the runners in the distant and just decided to find a place to park and walk over to the finish line.
Walking around seeing all the runners I realize there was no way I would find (Brooke) Miss Minnesota. So I was just about to walk back to my car when I got the first phone call from her. I could not hear very well because there was a Band playing and all I heard was that she was by a tent and a street named How and Merriam. So I did what I taught my children, I went to a Police Officer and asked where was How and Merriam? He had a map and said there are no streets that started with H (How) but that Merriam Street was on the corner. So I waited by the corner as hundreds of runners went by. I tried calling back the number that Miss Minnesota called from, no answer. OK, so back to rule number 1, stay calm. What else did she say, a tent, ok so there was a tent by the finish line I will go back there and look for her? Now it was starting to get dark and I was getting a little worried, those thoughts start to come into your head as a parent that you have lost your child and panic was starting to set in, when I got the second phone call from her.
This time I could hear her, we had a plan to meet at the finish line, where the red and blue balloon arch was. Relief! As I stood next to the arch waiting, the race organizers start to deflate the balloon arch, but when I looked up I heard a familiar voice it was Brooke, Miss Minnesota.
She was excited about her race time and wondering where I had been all this time. I just smiled and said I was here waiting for you.
Rule number 3. Never let your Queen out of your sight without a chaperone.
Next Appearance: Miss Frazee Pageant. I think my Dad is going to accompany me on this one!
Always,
Brooke
posted by Brooke at
11:46 AM
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