Almost as good as first!

All right, here is yet another race entry! I wish I had other things going on, but come on. At this time of year, it's racing and running, so I guess you'll have to suffer from hearing about them! We had a race up in the canyon called FunRun4Kids, and it was our first year running this one. I'd heard it was pretty good and easy-all down hill and that not many people run it. Thank goodness, I said, because I like a small race.
We got up there, and they carted us from the meeting spot further up the canyon to South Fork. We warmed up, waited for the starting pistol to go off, and when it did, I took off like a shot. For some reason, for the first half mile or so, my legs felt so heavy! It was such a weird feeling, thank goodness that didn't last for too long.
I was alone for most of the race, I think I was only passed three times, by some guys. I was going as fast as I could, and then, when there was only about a half mile left, I was passed by another girl. This made me mad, I hate being passed by girls! I don't know why, it just drives me crazy. So then when I could see the finish line, I started to sprint, but by then, I had pretty much given my all, so I couldn't go much faster than I already was! I crossed the finish line at 24:02-which is actually a PR for me, so I felt really good about myself. Right after I crossed it, I was told my a race official that I was the third female that finished! I felt pretty good about myself, but still disappointed in myself for not finishing second. I almost had it.
They had a little awards ceremony afterwards, and they handed out awards to the top 3 finishers - so I was a winner! They called my name up to the podium - which they of course pronounced wrong. I was sad. Guenevere. That's definitely not my name, come on! After they said it, PJ shouted out my real name, and he corrected himself. I went up there, got my medal, and had to stand on one of those podium things. I found out, I lost second place by 8 seconds. 8 seconds only. 8 seconds. So little time. I am mad at myself, but nothing I can do about it now. Shoot. I was like, the 10th person or so to cross the finish line, overall, so that was pretty good too.
Anyway, so there you have it. In addition to my medal, I also won some Nerf toys- a baseball game kit, a football and frisbee. That's actually pretty fun- I can't wait to play. Luckily, someone there had a camera, and sent me this picture, so now I have proof of my winnings. I'm a champ.