Sound Bites & Snap Shots

Besides the Evansville Half Marathon, there has only been one race that I have really, really, really wanted to run since I started lacing up my shoes.  It’s a race run over the bridges from Henderson, Kentucky to downtown Evansville, Indiana.  It was a very popular race but before we moved here, they stopped holding it.  Everyone talked about what a great race it was which only made me want to run it more.  Three years ago, race directors brought it back but this year is the first year I was not otherwise committed on the date.  I was excited! 

Months ago Walker and I signed up, he to ride his bike 10 miles and I to run.  We were set.  Krista drove her truck so we could get Walker’s bike down to the start because Bill and Mason were setting up for the cub scout campout.  The rain that poured yesterday during packet pickup had finally passed. We got downtown to the start with plenty of time and we even found a great parking place. 

Then suddenly everything flipped.  We were just about to put Walker’s bike on the bus when he reached down and realized he had dropped his iPhone.  A quick look around didn’t produce it so Krista offered to load Walker’s bike on the bus while we retraced our steps back to the truck.  At this point, I was panicking but trying to be calm.  Savvy Walker quickly put his phone in lost mode and then turned on Find My iPhone.  We could see Walker’s phone as a blue dot on the map of my iPhone screen near where we parked so we broke out in a run. 

Before we reached the car, we noticed the blue dot was moving, moving fast, and moving away from where we were.  It was moving into Kentucky.  More panic.  I was flabbergasted that someone had found the phone that fast and was hightailing away.  Walker and I started to try to find race officials to alert them of the lost phone but things were rather chaotic.  The only thing we could do was find Krista and board the bus ourselves.  It was hard for me to be calm.  As fast as we were moving on the bus was the dot moving, still traveling away from us. 

Walker continued to track his phone using mine.  None of the pings Walker made to his phone were getting any response but then he noticed the dot had stopped right about where the race would start.  We had a glimmer of hope that the phone was on a race bus.  We could do nothing but pray that the dot would return in our direction.  Then it started moving again but this time toward us.  Just as we entered Henderson, we passed the bus carrying Walker’s phone. 

We got to Henderson just before the bike race was supposed to start. Krista was a godsend and offered to wait for the bus to return.  Walker and I ran down to his starting line expecting to retrieve his bike but it was not there.  We stopped at the first bus we saw and asked where the bikes were being unloaded.  The driver looked at us and said, “I don’t know.  I have a bike but no rider.”  Not only were we lucky to found Walker’s bike, but we also found a friend of ours who was also doing the ride.   

We quickly filled Brian in on the details of the lost phone and I continued to track the cell phone on my phone.  I left Walker in Brian’s care and ran up to wait for the bus. 

It finally arrived.  I raced over to the driver’s window and held up my phone showing the Find My iPhone screen .  I blurted out, “I lost my iPhone.  It says it’s on your bus!”  She reached down and handed it over.  I was so happy I almost kissed her. 

I raced down to the bike start, did a major happy dance with Walker and handed over the phone.  And, yes, I watched him button it safely in his pocket.

Once he and Brian were off, I found some friends to wait with for the start of my race.

Barb and Amy planned to walk the race so I was glad to see them.

Kristy, Krista, Dawn, and Kristi are mother runners from school.

There was a great turnout for the race.  It was cold but dry and I was so glad to get moving.

Walker crossed the bridge long ahead of me from the look on his face, he was having a blast.   

Krista and I stopped to take pictures on the bridge.  I wanted to remember having crossed it on foot. 

At the finish line, I met up again with Kristy, Krista, Amy and their daughters.  Amy had pushed her daughter in a jogging stroller the full 10 miles.  What a woman!

I could not have been more delighted to have had Walker by my side at the end of this race.  Our morning was filled with so many incidences to be grateful for and we were both counting our blessings.