I’ve done quite a few races since I began running, but the most meaningful one was the Gasparilla 5K on Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019.
That’s because it was the first one I did with Cherie.1
Cherie and I worked together for a long time at the Tampa Tribune. If there’s one thing you learn as a journalist, it’s that the friends you make in the newsroom are the very best kind of friends.2
In those days, I was overweight. Every year, Cherie would ask if I had any interest in just walking the Gasparilla 5K, and every year I gave the same response: “Let me lose a little weight, and we can do it next year.”
Of course, we never did it.
Cherie and I both left the newsroom long before the Trib, like many other papers, went belly-up. She went into PR. I went into professional services and then detoured into marketing. We stayed in touch, but you know things aren’t the same when you’re not interacting every day.
In 2017, I started to make a concerted effort to get my weight under control. In 2018, down nearly 80 pounds, I started running. When I saw the announcement about the upcoming Gasparilla 5K in 2019, I called Cherie and proposed we go. She was ecstatic and said yes. I was proud of myself and incredibly excited.
Here we are in that first race:
![](https://i0.wp.com/dailydave.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/IMG_1319.jpeg?resize=580%2C435&ssl=1)
![](https://i0.wp.com/dailydave.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/orig-GSAG0956.jpeg?resize=427%2C640&ssl=1)
Since then, we’ve done the Gasparilla 5K every year (except in 2021, because it was canceled due to Covid).
![](https://i0.wp.com/dailydave.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GSAT1365-original.jpeg?resize=427%2C640&ssl=1)
![](https://i0.wp.com/dailydave.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/IMG_7142-1.jpeg?resize=580%2C436&ssl=1)
Two days ago, we were out on Bayshore again for this year’s race. Here are some pictures.
![](https://i0.wp.com/dailydave.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/IMG_0735.jpeg?resize=480%2C640&ssl=1)
![](https://i0.wp.com/dailydave.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/IMG_8550.jpeg?resize=580%2C435&ssl=1)
![](https://i0.wp.com/dailydave.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/IMG_0745.jpeg?resize=480%2C640&ssl=1)
Running the Gasparilla 5K with Cherie is something I look forward to every year. It’s not just a race — it’s a tradition. The next one is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 24, 2024. Get ready to run, Cherie!
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1 My favorite Cherie story: When we first started working together, we were working on a dual-bylined story and I put her name down as “Cheri” at the top. She said “My name as an E” at the end. I said “are you sure?” She said, “I think I know how to spell my own name.” I was embarrassed at the time, but now it’s pretty darn funny.
2 Conversely, the assholes you meet in the newsroom are the very worst type of assholes.