mo’ cowbell
“I’ve got a fever, and the only prescription is…”
What do 2 people who can’t run a half marathon currently do with their Sunday mornings? That’s right, go cheer on 1,500 runners at the start of the inaugural MO’ Cowbell Half Marathon. I really wish I was writing this as a race recap, talking about how I ran a new PR or even writing this from a spectator’s point of view, but I’m not.
So, why I am even writing about this race at all?
The Bucket List. No, not the movie. The bucket list that Matt has been chipping away at for the past few years. Pretty much if we ever do anything different or interesting, it is because of Matt’s Bucket List. I think it’s pretty cool that he’s not waiting until he’s close to “kicking the bucket” to actually do some of the things he wants to do. (Don’t worry, I’ve asked numerous times if him working on it means anything. He’s assured me it’s just to do interesting things and the list will continue to grow as long as he hasn’t kicked the bucket yet.) And, his bucket list has gotten me to do some things I never thought I would even care to do.
So, why I am even writing about this race at all?
After announcing the addition of this new race to St. Louis’s race schedule, Big River Running also announced the attempt at breaking the Guinness World Record for most cowbells ringing at the same time. One of the things Matt has talked about for his bucket list is breaking (or helping to break) a Guinness World Record. So, we figured that since we had an open Sunday morning and the race wasn’t all the way downtown (spoken like a true suburbanite) we would go and try to help break the world record!
It was a cold morning for the beginning of October, so a stop at Starbucks was essential. A decaf Pumpkin Spice Latte for each of us, an apple fritter for Matt, and a (unpictured) bagel with cream cheese for the pregnant girl who has eaten her body weight in bagels this past week (thus, no picture since I scarfed that thing down).
We got to the race start with plenty of time since we weren’t sure exactly when the record attempt was going to take place. One of the things I love about St. Louis is that it’s a big city with a small town feel – I almost ALWAYS run into someone I know. This morning we ran into an older brother of one of my friends from high school, which was ironic since I was wearing his sister’s hoodie with his last name on the back of it! As a father of 2, he gave us some wonderful words of encouragement and some of the best advice we’ve gotten before expecting our first child. He told us that yes, being a parent is difficult, but it’s one of the best experiences in your life. There will be sleepless nights and times when you feel like you have no idea what you’re doing, but everyone goes through it and everyone survives. It was exactly what I needed to hear! Thanks Adam! We really appreciate it!
About 15 minutes before the start of the race, “Don’t Fear the Reaper” started playing and the cowbells started ringing. Nothing like 1,500+ people each ringing a cowbell! Loud and definitely annoying, but still pretty cool to see that many people with cowbells in running gear attempting to break a world record!
No word on whether a record was actually broken, but we were happy to be there for the attempt. I’m not going to lie, though… I was really wishing I was out there running with them. I’m so ready to train + race again, and this flat + fast course is definitely on my race calendar for next year! And hopefully, another world record can be set as a participant instead of a “spectator”!
Lots of cow suits, but definitely not my thing!
Do you have a Bucket List or is there something you really want to do or see before you die? I don’t have a bucket list per se, but there are things I want to accomplish in my lifetime. And one of them will happen in the next week or 2, depending on when Baby M wants to make her arrival!