300 metres

Up at 6:50am this morning because I slept fitfully.
Was at Michael's door by 8am and we were on public transit by 8:30, heading out to see A carry the Olympic torch in New Westminster.
A is a pace leader for the half marathoners where I run and he often comes for coffee and for beers with us.
He is the first person to offer people a ride home.
If he sees you out running he'll tell you on Facebook and say that you looked great.
He is always one of the first to wish me good luck before every marathon I run.
On more than one occasion I've been in a foul mood for whatever reason (it doesn't take much as evidenced by Twilight) and I've gone onto Facebook to see that A has become a fan of "the cool side of the pillow" or "finding money in your pocket" or "positive thinking".
So today, at about 10:30 I was extremely ecstatic to see him step out of the shuttle, dressed head to toe in white, with his unlit torch, in front of hundreds of spectators and dozens of friends and family members.
He looked confident, but a little alone as he stood on the street waiting for the existing torch bearer to come and light his own torch. I walked over and chatted with him briefly and asked if he would mind taking a picture with me and how he was doing and he confessed he was a little nervous.
After, he was thronged with people wanting photos and then the flame came down Royal Avenue and the cannon in front of city hall was fired a few times and I thought I was going to have a coronary and we couldn't even see A anymore: we could only see two lit torches as the flame was transferred and everyone was buoyant and jubilant and then he was off, heading down Royal and turning up the hill on 6th and I sprinted to catch up with him, standing on a bus bench to snap as many photos as I could as he transferred the flame to the next recipient.
I can't adequately express how emotional I was seeing someone that I am privileged to know experience what will no doubt be one of the highlights of their life.
Again. The series of events in my life that resulted in me standing on Royal Avenue in New Westminster on a Tuesday morning, seeing a friend, a fellow athlete and one of the most admirable people I have ever met in my life experience something that he will remember for years to come.
To be there to see him pause because of all of the people screaming his name as he started to climb back into the shuttle, and for him to turn back and smile at us and wave with his mittened hand so that everyone could get one last photo opportunity.
Congratulations, A.