Sint Elisabeth's Charity Run

After warm and sunny weather all week, Friday morning arrived overcast and chilly. Some people might have chosen to stay inside with a nice cup of coffee and a good book, but not our lovely group of KBers. We were participating in the Sint Elisabeth's Charity Run. Sint Elisabeth's School is a school for kids aged 2 1/5 to 13 years old who have autism, so we were very happy to take part in this event to raise money for the school. Not only that, you get a snazzy neon green race shirt. Woohoo! You could sign up for different distances, and the buses dropped each group off at their specific spot on the race trail. The 20k group started first, and as they wove their way across the countryside, they passed the 15k, 10k, 5k, and 1k groups, who then joined the run in the back of the pack. I chose the 5K, because I'm new to this whole exercise thing, and figured that this was all I could handle for now. Now this is all good and fun, except for one dreaded thing...the slow bus. They want all of the runners to stay together, so if you fall behind, they pick you up in the bus, catch up with the group, and drop you off again. It practically stalks you, but it's a matter of pride. You do NOT want to be picked up by the slow bus. It's the ride of shame. My fellow 5kers and I started on one side of Peer, and jogged through the cobbled stone streets down the center of the town and out the other side. Some people stood by the roadside and cheered us on. Others looked at us like we were more than a little bit crazy. (Apparently no one had told THEM about the run, and they were wondering why strange people were running down the street dressed like neon green highlighters.) Anyhoo, we made it through Peer and then jogged off through the countryside. We traveled by green fields full of sheep and cows. Farmers paused in their work to admire us as we passed by. Horses ran back and forth along the fence line, tossing their heads up and down as if cheering us on. It would have been very enjoyable if it hadn't been for all that wheezing and panting I kept hearing. Oh, wait. That was me. My bad. I did make it, though. The whole way! I'm very proud of myself for completing my first race in Belgium. Yes, I know that I have an incredibly goofy look on my face, but I was so relieved to reach the finish like that I was practically giggling. When I wasn't panting, that is. It got a little crowded at the end, because all of the local school kids joined for the last 1k of the race. Brandon's school brought them over in a bus, so they got to participate as well. A good time was had by all. Here I am with my trusty photographer. Jess had the day off of school, so she hung out at the finish line and took pictures of people as they came by. We all hung out at the end and relaxed for a little bit. There were sandwiches, beer and coffee. It's Belgium, after all. Oh, one more thing. I'd like to apologize to Brandon's bus driver. I really didn't mean to give you that nasty look. I thought you were the slow bus creeping up on me, and I was SOOOO not getting in that thing. Once again, my bad.