Runners are racing and everything is tense. On Saturday, May 2, 2015, I had the chance to run the 10K Student Relay in the Mississauga Marathon. While exhausting at first, at the end it’s no sweat! Running marathons is fun, but celebrating at the end is even more fun!
The Mississauga Marathon
The Mississauga Marathon is a group that hosts marathons for the community—even people outside the community can participate! This year marked the 12th year of the run. I had the experience of running 2.5K in the 10K Student Relay Race. Each student had to run 2.5km in their position in order for their team. Every participant had their position; A, B, C or D. I took the position B and carried a little “PowerBar” in my hands. We named our team “Team Victory” and tried our best to keep our promise: “Never stop, even if you’re tired.” Everyone had a great time and it was an amazing experience.
The Start of the 10K Student Relay
1, 2, 3! Runner A rushed along and zoomed across the Lakeshore Road all the way to Rhododendron Gardens to tag Runner B. It had just begun. I was Runner B, so I waited patiently for Runner A to come and tag me. I watched all the swift runners come racing past and waited for a few minutes until my friend came along and tagged me. She clapped me on my hand and I began running.
My Experience
As a participant of the 10K Student Relay, I had an exciting and tiring experience. I kept the team promise to not stop although I was really tempted to. As soon as my friend had tagged me, I ran and jogged. Every now and then, I would slow down a little and refresh myself with the PowerBar. I also had a classmate running beside me giving me words of encouragement. I was tempted to stop moving my feet after seeing my classmate stop to rest. Then, I realized how important our team promise was. I encouraged myself and kept running. I was boiling in the inside and red on the outside! When I heard loud cheers, I knew I was getting closer.
When I saw my next teammate, I tagged her and stood on the dock, so relieved! A few of my friends who also participated in the marathon congratulated me and were talking about how relieved they were too. As I waited for my mom, I admired the view of Lake Ontario beside me and talked with my friends. I watched the waves do tiny bounces and splashes. Inside, I was hot and burning; on the outside, I was tall and proud.
Overall, it was a fun but exhausting experience. My team came in sixth place out of sixteen teams for our category—not bad! We were proud at the end and excited. We all received a finishers’ medal and went home. I had so much fun that I want to come back next year! Be sure to check out the marathon yourself sometime!
My Interview with Chris Kowaleski
On April 21, I went to Hershey Centre to interview Chris Kowaleski, Mississauga Marathon’s Marketing Manager who helped to organize the marathon I participated in.
Kowaleski thinks the most difficult part about his job is getting everyone on the same page. Media relations is an important part of Kowalseki’s job. Kowalseki says sometimes it is hard to get the media to know the correct information. For example, if the a journalist writes that the marathon is hard, people will be discouraged to participate. Kowalseki has to explain to the public that the Mississauga Marathon is not as hard as people think.
As a marketing manager, Kowaleski tries to get everyone in the community to know about the marathon and encourages them to participate. Kowaleski’s favorite part in his job is making posters because he enjoys being creative when he’s also raising awareness.
“I try to get all the commercials and advertisements out before April,” said Kowaleski. He wants to let the community to know about the event before it starts. Promoting the event early is important for increasing the number of participants.
The Mississauga Marathon Committee has always worked hard to get the whole community together and have a good time.
Keep it up on running and writing!