Proost! - ESTTV Taveres

Wat Verder Ter Tafel Komt
Thanks Paul
Nicolas
We were drinking some beers in the Trafalgar pub located in the
Dommelschstraat when one of my colleagues pop out with the question:
Why don't we run the Batavierenrace?. As we were already very happy after
a lot of beer we found the idea very appealing and consequently we start to
shout : Yeah!! let's do it!!. Next morning I was waking up with a terrible
hang over and even worst the idea of having to run more than 5 Km. I just
was thinking that I should run for the Taveres club and phrase was coming
to my hurting mind: "Thanks Paul!".
Few weeks after that, we were in the way to Nijmegen in our white car with
the team corresponding to the night shift (nacht ploeg). Many weeks of hard
training were behind us. We had stopped to smoke, reduced our beer
consumption and we replace one party of every week for one training day;
what a though task for us!. In Nijmegen, we wait until the departure of our
first runner, which took it longer than we expected due to technical problems
with the organization. So the race started, that implied that our driver had to
find the shortest and fastest way to the next relay point to make the changes
of runners. Unfortunately that was not always the case and some times we
had to improvise, like just exchanging the runner for the cyclist. When we
were in the way to my relay point, we got lost. Even worst, when we found
the right path, we were blocked by a car that stop because one of his
passengers had to defecate in the bushes next to the road. So I started to run,
not only because of the smell but also because I had to catch the relay point
on time and still thinking "Thanks Paul!"
Guess what? I did it. I caught the relay point on time!. But unfortunately my
cyclist could not do it. I am still laughing when I am picturing a Bolivian
guy running in the night through some small town in the Netherlands with
energizer drinks in each hands and shouting: "Selma where are you,
Selma?". After some minutes, Selma was finally there and from that moment
on the real work started. I run 10 Km, it was though but I enjoyed a lot the
sport feeling. Although, the last kilometers I couldn't think anything else
than trying not to stop, lay in the ground and ask for a beer. But it was worst
when I was "cycling" the last man of our shift, with pain in my legs and a
dry throat, I was thinking again "Thanks Paul!"
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