There’s a certain camaraderie that comes from standing behind a starting line in the pouring rain, knowing you’re about to embark on 3.1 miles together with a bunch of people you’ve never met before.

And I might as well say right now that I never imagined being that person, but I’ve found it’s really rather fun.

That moment on the starting line comes on the heels of (at least in my case) sitting in my car and staring at the pounding raindrops and wondering just what in the world I had signed up for. Summer’s End Fun Run? More like winter’s beginning. I wondered for a brief minute if I should have brought a beach towel as it looked like the experience might be more akin to swimming.

The event, which also included a 2K Fun Run for kids and a 10K, was held at, and around, Kentwood on Saturday. I signed up because a: I was looking for one more race for prep for another race I’m doing in Southern California, 2: I had a ball at the first race I did on the Fourth of July, and 3: it was close to home.

It was a fairly small group. The first race I did was in downtown Seattle at 11:55 p.m. on July 3 and there were a ton of people there. The starting line was more like being in the middle of a medium sized mob that all started running at the same time. That was intense. But it could have been worse, it could have been in boats. Saturday was definitely much more relaxed.

The good news is that upon accepting that I was underprepared in the waterproof attire department and I was going to get drenched the whole thing became a lot more hilarious. Just gotta roll with it, right? This is Washington after all.

At the starting line there was a good deal of laughing and joking about how wet we were intermixed with chatter about the course and lots of trying to stay warm.

I was a little worried I was going to take a wrong turn what with the 5K and the 10K courses criss-crossing each other and so few people which meant not a lot of people to follow, but the course was really well marked and it didn’t end up being a problem.

The course started at the high school and went out onto 164th and down the hill, turning before getting to the Covington library, then weaving up and down neighborhood streets between the school and state Route 18. And then there was the huge hill at the end. And a puddle that was competing to be classified as a small lake. Lets just say it was deeper than I anticipated. The things that good stories are made of. As a side note I wonder if my shoes are dry yet.

My editor, Kris Hill, and I have been shadowing different high school coaches the past few weeks, working on a series, the first part of which is on page 11, and one theme that kept popping up as we talked to them was that of helping kids realize what they’re capable of and challenging themselves. I have a theory that that is a goal nearly universal among coaches. I know looking back now on my experiences as an athlete that was a big take away for me, although I didn’t recognize it at the time. It’s funny the things we learn without even realizing it, and how it spills over into other areas of life.

And that’s really how I got started running. I was a swimmer growing up and I never thought I’d take up running. But this year it was what I decided to take on, to prove to myself that I could do it. And now I’ve found something I enjoy and I plan on continuing.

The 5K on Saturday was fun, rain and all. I’d definitely do that again.

But today, today I’m relishing the fact that two of my next races are taking me south. Sunshine and what not.