i didn't earn it

I have a friend who works the Reach the Beach race in NH (and now MA and NJ) every year.  It's a 24hr, 200mi long relay race.  Teams of 12 each run 3-4 legs of the race - overnight, rain or shine.  Once in a while she will give me some swag...  One year she gave me a sweet jacket that is super warm.

This past Sunday, she gave me a RTB tech shirt.  It fits perfectly and was just the thing to wear when I went out for my run yesterday.  The only thing is I didn't earn the shirt.  I didn't run the race.  And so I felt a little guilty for wearing the shirt.  I know, I know, I should just be grateful I have another comfortable short-sleeved tech shirt in my drawer...but I feel a little bit like a poser wearing the shirt and not having put in the work of a 24hr, 200mi relay race.  Wouldn't you?  Some day I hope to be a part of team that actually does the race.  I mean, it sounds pretty flippin' sweet, right?!  But I haven't yet...

I know that I will still wear this shirt even though I didn't earn it, but I might be more inclined to wear the short-sleeved race shirts that I did earn:  a couple from some half marathons this year, my Chicago and Kalamazoo marathon shirts, and the Great Bay half I did with friends a week before Boston. 

For the record, I did 8.4mi yesterday (at a 9:15 pace!) and have another 4mi or so on the schedule for today.  It's gonna be a big mileage week!!