If you weren’t aware, Saturday was the day the world ran. Nike organized a “Human Race” that anyone could participate in across the United States (for free!). The distance was 10K, and in certain cities Nike sponsored organized races and would upload finisher times if the runners owned the Nike Plus system. TN Multisports athletes wanted to have fun and support our sponsor Road Runner Sports, who hosted one of the organized runs, so lots of us signed up and showed up at Greenlake to run around the lake in the chilly am fall temperatures.

Road Runner manager and TN Multisports athlete Mark Webb got up bright and early the day of the race to mark the trail and get things organized at the store. A DJ worked up both the athletes and surrounding neighbors with his funky jams. Runners received free Nike running shirts that had their race numbers printed directly on the fabric. How fancy!

Many of our athletes seemed to enjoy racing against the TN Multisports coaches. Bridget and I did our best to run with our team, and it was great seeing everyone in action. One of our athletes, Matt Wilson, wanted to pass Coach Bridget in the last 1/4 of a mile, but he started his kick a little too soon and before you knew it Bridget was back in the lead. Better luck next time, Matt! I had a lot of fun pacing Tracey Henderson and pushing him to run hard… I think I would go crazy if my coach was fast on my heels!

The post-race festivities was a lot of fun. There was a ton of food and free giveaways available to the athletes, and I think that almost everyone who showed up won a prize. The grand prize was impressive: a free pair of Nike shoes, an iPod nano, a Nike Plus watch and the Nike Plus system, and as luck would have it, one of our TN Multisports athletes, Jason Arango, walked home with the bag full of goodies. Congratulations, Jason!

Road Runner Sports at Greenlake and the Nike staff on-hand did an absolutely fantastic job organizing the event. I highly recommend the Human Race to everyone — it was fun and very well organized. Thanks to all of the TN Multisport athletes who showed up to run and support the team, Road Runner Sports and Nike. You all did really well, and everyone seemed to PR! We’ll see you at the next event!