Race Recap: Pumpkin Classic 10K

Most handsome cheerleader I'll ever have!

This morning I ran the best race of my life!  Why?

I had fun!

and I ran well!

If you could look through the computer right now, I'm still smiling!  This is especially satisfying because just last night I was doubting whether I should even run today.  I've had a terrible twitch/pain in my left shin the past couple days.  So in one respect, my legs were well rested.  But I was really worried about further injury threatening my marathon next weekend.  I literally slept with an ice pack on my shin last night.  After a mile warmup this morning, I deemed it okay to go.  I really wanted to "race," but promised myself if I felt any pain, to ease up and save it for the marathon.

Before the start, I met up with the Sole Sisters.  We had almost 30 women running either the 10K or the 2 miler.  It is so invigorating to start off a race with a little pep rally like that!  Our group is only 4 months young, but we've all gotten so close and encouraging to one another.

We missed a handful of Sisters who were doing their pre-race warmup.  Love these ladies!

Both the 2mile and 10K started together.  It was a very congested start, took a good 1/2 mile to fall into pace.  In fact, I jumped up on the sidewalk just to get out of the mass.  I'll never understand why slow runners and walkers line up in the front of the pack?

My legs felt so good and I was ready to run!!  I told myself to hold back a bit... 6.2 miles can be a long hard sprint!  After time-checking the first two miles (8:58 average), I fell into a good steady pace.  Fellow Sole Sister Emily ran neck and neck with me.  We became a good push for one another.  When I felt myself lighten up, she was strong, and vice versa.

Mile 3... 8:49 split.  Sweet!
Mile 4... 8:50 split.  How am I doing this?

I made a point of having fun in this race.  I gave a fist pump and shout out to the bands entertaining on the course, a thank you to the volunteers I passed, and a hello to nearly every spectator on the course (there weren't many in the middle miles!).

Mile 5... 9:07 split.  Gettting harder to hold that sub-9 pace.
Mile 6... 8:54 split.  Something about that final mile that puts a little pep in your step!

Now the worst part of the race was the last .2 mile.  Along with the race, there is a Pumpkin Festival happening in the city of Morton, which includes a pancake breakfast and a parade this morning. As we turned that final corner, we ran into the center of the festival grounds.  Good part was there were a ton of people lining the streets... but not exactly cheerleaders.  They kept crossing the street in front of runners.  At the end, the course narrowed so much that it was hard to see where to go.  I saw the blue timing mat and stopped.  But wait... that wasn't the finish?!  About 20 yards ahead was actually the finish.  So many people were crossing the race route and standing in front of the finish clock that you could hardly make out the finish line.  They definitely needed some kind of tape or barriers along the final stretch for the safety of everyone.  As I was cheering in the remaining runners, there were people just randomly walking out into the course and nearly colliding with runners sprinting in their finish.  They literally had no idea a race was even going on, just trying to get to the pumpkin pancakes!  Weirdest finish I'd ever seen.

I eventually made it over the second timing mat for a finishing time of 55:12, according to my stopwatch.  That averaged an 8:53 pace!!  I was thrilled beyond measure with that time for a 6.2 mile run!  Woo-Hoo!   (Note: Our local timing folks don't do timing mats at the start, thus everyone gets the same start time no matter where you're lined up.  Stupid in my opinion.  So chip times are gun start times; today adding a good 35 seconds on my "official" time. I'm so thankful for my sportwatch to track my true start-to-finishline time.)

I'm on such a Runner's High right now... I hope I can carry that into next weekend for the Quad Cities Marathon!  I just gotta slow it down and go another 20 miles... Easy, right?!