Racing With My Pet Turtle

Nothing could be more humbling than losing your pet turtle while competing in an athletic competition.  Why would you run with your pet turtle in the first place?  You ask.  Why risk it’s escape?  Well I didn’t plan on bringing it.  I actually avoid having any vegetables the day before for fear of tempting my turtle with them.  I wonder how often a turtle escapes from it’s shell when someone happens to be racing with theirs.  An exploding turtle might not be as rare as you think.  The embarrassment of one losing their beloved pet turtle might prevent someone from talking about it.

I entered an MUD RUN (ironic, turtles like mud don’t they?)  last year and after I started the race, I realized that I had unknowingly brought my pet turtle with me.  I had it under my shirt and every time I took a step it would kick me in the stomach.  The race was only a 5k, so I figured that it wouldn’t be a big deal if I just ran with it for the rest of the race.  I had about a half mile left when he started to stick his head out.  I felt like it might get a little bit too dangerous if I kept running, so I considered walking which I really didn’t want to do.  I had been keeping pace with this girl and I really wanted to finish the race.  Well my pet turtle was getting way to excited and kept sticking its head out.  I was worried that it might just jump right out of it’s shell.

I made my decision.  I broke off from the girl that I was keeping pace with and left the course and ran down a hill that had a lake at the bottom of it.  The only humane thing to do was release the turtle, which I did.  As I let it go, it fled down the hill without looking back.  I really have to say it was quite a relief.  I still finished my race and left my turtle to fend for itself