Running is something that engages and you realize that you don’t only run for good health but for pleasure and with the intention of showing yourself that you can run faster and for a long amount of time. You mark goals and join competitions. First 5k, then 10k, a half marathon, and finally, the dream of every runner: a marathon.
Me debut would be in Spain, in Zaragoza, where I live with my family. I am originally from Venezuela. My parents, Tulio (70) and Gladys (68) live in Venezuela. My brother Luis (43) and my younger sister Ana Maria (36) also live in Venezuela with their own families. Instead, my brother Tulio (44) and my other brother Juan Carlos (41) have been living in Vancouver for approximately one year. The two of them do not stop talking about how wonderful the city is. We maintain almost always daily contact with each other thanks to the new technologies.
Since I’ve stared running regularly we have been talking a lot about the topic of running. All of my brothers and my sister have be running for many years. One day, my brothers decided that we should a run a marathon together. Tulio, Luis and Juan Carlos had already run several. My sister and me were the only ones left. So Tulio signed everyone in the 2012 Vancouver Marathon. It would be very special because for 10 years, since my sister’s wedding, we haven’t gathered all together. We all wanted to see each other and we all wanted to get to know Vancouver. And what better excuse than to run with all your brothers that you haven’t seen in a long time? In addition, our father turned 70 years on April 13th and as a gift we gave him a ticket to Vancouver. So that way he can receive us on the finish line.
Tulio, the most experienced runner, sent us the email with the training. 16 weeks of training passed and we all gave the best we could. Tulio was fighting against the cold weather of Vancouver, which he was not used to as his swollen fingers in his hands show. Luis was struggling against an old injury caused by a soccer practice. Juan Carlos, a film producer, decided that climbing the mountains in Nepal for he’s documentary was enough training. Ana Maria was doing some training with her Spinning classes. And I only lost 1 day of training because of the wind and bad weather in Zaragoza. It was going to be a very long and expensive trip for my first marathon. I had to finish it.
Finally, on May 2nd, in the Vancouver Airport, we all got together again. It was very exciting. Until the day of the race, we did nothing but have a good time sightseeing the city. And we agreed that our brothers were very lucky to be living in this city.
The day of the race came. The whole family was waiting very anxiously. Not only the one is in Vancouver but also the ones in Venezuela, Spain, and even family in the United States. My sister-in-law, Carolina, Tulio’s wife, was running the half marathon. So that would be 6 people in the family running the same race.
At the last minute my brother Juan Carlos resigned from the race because of back pains, so he dedicated himself to organizing logistics and to upgrade via social network our location at all times. A very special moment was when in one of the many refreshment stations that they had, I realized that the person handing me the cup of water was my nephew, Santiago (8). Him, along with my niece Oriana (7) had volunteered to hand out water to the runners. It was really exciting to see them. At the end we all ended the race. Some arrived first and in better shape than others, as expected. My father was very proud, happy and relieved to see that all of his children had arrived safely. The 2012 Vancouver Marathon will be an unforgettable experience and will pass in the history of a normal family from Venezuela that remains very close no matter the distance that separates us.