New run added
September 5, 2010Summer is about over, but the running isn’t quite to that point. Training has continued the last few weeks following the Gopher to Badger Half Marathon in August. It’s still been going well, mixing in some outdoor running with indoor running, including treadmill hills that were needed for the last run in Stillwater, MN to Hudson, WI.
Just when I thought it was only going to be one more run for the year, we’re going to add to the schedule ONE more run. It makes sense to do so on this date, especially when the main reason for the current situation happened on 9/11, back in 2001. I remember that day very well. It was my third full week of college at Northland Community & Technical College where I started to learn my broadcasting “skills”. We were between classes, so I was down in the cafeteria with a few other people just getting some breakfast. We were making our way back to the media class room that morning and on the big screen in the commons, not far from the main office at NCTC, CNN was on the television. We couldn’t hear the audio because so many people were gathered around the TV talking and some crying. All you could see coming up to the area was on a the screen two buildings that were smoking, then the replay, over and over and over again, of an airplane flying into the first World Trade Center building. Then another one later on, followed by some other activity going on by the east coast. When I hear that song by Alan Jackson, “Where were you when the world stopped turning”, I think back to that day and remember it very clearly. In the song he asks several different places of where you might have been on that September day. I’m pretty sure you remember where you were at too that morning and hearing about this.
Being in radio, we learned how to be on our toes and receive news feeds in a situation like that. It was crazy watching classmates who were on for that morning, printing off information, staying attentive for our CNN Radio feed and reporting the constantly updated information that was coming across the wire. Nothing like being thrown into the fire.
We as classmates were helping gather information, so it was a total team effort. Some of us still not believing what happened could just watch in awe as others were roaming around the halls, seeing other students hugging each other and lending a shoulder to cry on. We heard stories from some students who had relatives or friends out in the New York area, frightened for their life and safety. It seems like when you hear about something similar to this, there’s always a handful or more of people that have some sort of connection to the incident.
On September 11th, 2010 – Nine years after that terrible day…Philco’s Freedom Team will be represented in the Dick Beardsley running event in Detroit Lakes, MN. We will enter the 5K, as the Kroll’s Bismarck Half Marathon is only a week away from that. It will be not only a good warm up for that weekend being part of an actual run event, but it will be very much needed for people to realize that so many have lost their lives for us. If you’re down in Detroit Lakes on 9/11 – be watching for us. Take some time to reflect on that day that was, almost ten years ago.
Posted by Kurt Philion