On race day, I was up at 5:30a.m. (it was still dark) and was ready to go! Before leaving the house, I snacked on piece of wheat toast with peanut butter, half a banana, and half a protein shake. I also had an apple in the car on the way to Dana Point for some extra pre-race fuel! It was a pretty cold morning and there was a slight chance of rain so I wore my Lululemon running pants, a dry-fit long sleeve top, and a pink swishy down-filled vest with hoodie in case the weather turned ugly.
I hadn’t run a 10k in almost 10 years, and hadn’t run more than 4 miles at one time since then, so I was a little bit nervous about whether or not I’d complete it. It also didn’t help that the front runners looked like this:
Intensity.
I’m somewhere way towards the back.
Because I was tardy, I was towards the back half of the third wave of runners so I didn’t get to start the race until probably 15 minutes after the first wave. But before I knew it, my legs were movin’ and I was racin’ away!
Throughout the duration of the race, I had a few thoughts along the way:
Mile 0.20: Is that the first wave of runners already on their way back? Ummm....they’ve completed half the course and I just started. And yes, these guys were averaging under 5 minutes a mile! WTF?!
Mile 1: Wasn’t too bad. I had to remember not to get too excited and sprint the entire way. My arches were a little crampy but that eventually went a way.
Mile 2: Mmmmm...water station...the ocean looks so pretty...ew those are a lot of birds...I better run faster than that pregnant lady...
Mile 4: This 3rd mile has got to be the longest mile ever. When will it ever end? Oh wait. I’m already at Mile 4? Where was the sign? I guess I was too busy looking at everything else that I missed the Mile 3 sign! Wheeee! Two more to go!
Mile 4.5: Hey is that Lynne Curtin from RHOOC? Yes it is! Gotta catch up....
Mile 5: By this point, I took my first break and walked a bit. I was a little bit over my playlist, but so I kept pace with my new pseudo-celebrity friend Lynne.
Mile 6: “Is that the finish line?! See ya later Lynne!” I could see the end, and was feeling proud of how far I’d made it. I picked up the pace, and then, just like that…I finished! Final time: 1 hour and 22 minutes.
It felt amazing to finish and I can't wait to sign up for another race!
I am so proud and envious of your endurance and high spritis during the race...and I liked reading about your Turkey Trot outfit. Did you wear a sweat headband? I'm really into those mini-headbands like Sasha V. (mysterious ethnicity)from The Lakers wears out on the court. We pretty much have the same haircut, so I figure that he would know the best thing to wear to deter hair sweat.
ReplyDeleteDid you get a Turkey Trot t-shirt? Uh, did you get stuck with size XL? I feel like SM
t-shirts don't really exist and it's all smoke and mirrors at events like 10k's or company picnics, etc. Where's your finish line photo?