I told Andrew the night before the race that I wished I was running the marathon instead of the 10k. That 10k pace really scares me but I’m glad I did it because it’s the things that make us really uncomfortable that make us better.
We started with a 3.2 mile warm-up at an 8:34 pace with a few short strides thrown in at the end. It actually felt cooler at the start than previous years so I was happy about that. I took a caffeine Maurten at 6:15 so that it would be kicking in by the time we started at 7. This race always starts on time and I’m very grateful for that fact.
Andrew was working and so my good friend Jo was the race photographer for the day (thank you)! My goal was to avoid thinking about how I felt for as much of the race as I could. This tactic helps me so much because once my brain goes down the road thinking about how horrible I feel, the joy gets sucked out of it.
This was my 4th year running the UV 10k… And my times here have been –> 38:14, 38:54, 37:03, and now 37:23. After the month we have had, I am very happy about the time. I went out to try to break 37 but didn’t get it. This race really motivated me to sign up for more shorter races because they push me so much harder than workouts do.
I was in 5th place about a mile into the race and passed one girl on the uphill (maybe a first for me) at mile 4ish and finished in 4th overall female and first in my age group!
All of the race medals didn’t show up in time and so they gave out these to the finishers… almost as good;). They will mail them out once they arrive.
Truly, the highlight of the entire day for me was watching my nephew and niece run the marathon. I love them both, and watching them out there doing something so hard gave me all the feelings.
There is not a chance on the planet that I could have done what they did on Saturday when I was their age. I love them so much.
Curly made it possible for me to race and then my sister picked them all up to be able to see their cousins crush the finish. I am lucky.
Now for some new race tips that I learned on Saturday:
*Wearing a tank yet it is hot outside? Tuck the back up into your sports bra. It kept me so much cooler.
* I really don’t know why I keep trying to make music work during anything other than the second half of a marathon. It actually drives me crazy and bothered me for a lot of the race (I realized after I should have just took out my headphones but I kept thinking the next song would make me love it). Tip from this… don’t force something that doesn’t work for you. There is something about the zen I feel from pushing myself so hard without the distraction of music that I really love… I guess I need to sign up for another race this month.
*If porta potty lines are long before the race, find a new development close and use the bathrooms there.
*Always eat french toast after a race.
*No drop bag, no problem… find a nice bush (and remember to get it later that day… not the next day like me;)
*Send a picture of this contraption to your next summer race and request they put these in… They save you in the heat!
*Don’t get hit by a car. This was the closest call that I’ve ever had on a course with a car. There is a point at around mile 1 where you do a 180 turn around a blind corner. There weren’t supposed to be any cars there, but there was a white truck; he even saw us and continued forward. My HR was already skyrocketing at that point, and it took me to the next level.
*Wear comfortable shoes as a spectator… My sister is getting better at this;). She ran in flip flops the time she ran 6 miles with me at the end of the race and wore these for the few miles that we ran with my niece on Saturday:)
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Any race tips that you have learned recently?
Give me a highlight or a few from your weekend, please?
Any June birthdays, races, or anniversaries?
Anyone else race this weekend, I want to hear about it!
