Monday, May 10, 2010

Pink Ribbon 5k Race Report

Sunday dawned COLD and snowy with a temperature of 32F!!  I didn't think it would be that cold so I hadn't brought any warm clothes with me, as I was staying at my parents.  My mom and I made a quick stop at my apartment to pick up my pink under armour top and then we headed to the race around 8am.


We arrived at around 8:30 with the race set to start at 9:05am (not sure about those extra 5 minutes...)  The parking lot was filled with women all dressed in every shade of pink!  We quickly found the registration table and signed in but the people couldn't find my mom's name.  I had accidentally signed my mom up to run the 5k instead of walk...opps!

We made a bathroom stop and then huddled together for warmth while we waited for the race to start.  I didn't even warm up before the race but I knew that I would be ok since I had been practicing running 2 miles fast in the morning with no warm up!


The start of the race was also the finish as it was an out and back course!  Soon it was almost time to start but not before every important person got to say a few words! I was freezing, my feet and fingers were cold and I just wanted to get started so I could warm up!


Before I knew it we were on our way.  I followed a few women and just tried to stay with them as I wasn't sure how fast they were going. I could barely feel my feet because they were numb from the cold which really is the oddest feeling while running!  In the past I have always started out way too fast on the first mile but this race (and in the other 5k race I ran 2 weeks ago) I started off at just the right pace.  I actually ran the same split for my first mile as my last 5k which was awesome.  I was happy I was able to control the pace right from the beginning and not start too fast.

Soon we passed the first mile marker and there was a nice decline but I knew I would have to climb it on the way back.  I slowly picked off two runners and felt strong.  I did feel a little crampy in my stomach but just kept focusing on moving my arms in the correct form and soon I felt better.  We made a left onto a side street for the loop around and I passed another runner.  We finished the loop and came out on the street for the final part of the race.  By this time there were many runners going the opposite way as me and they cheered as they saw the leaders go by.

As I passed mile 2 I still was feeling good.  Legs were moving, arms felt good and breathing was under control.  I just keep chugging along.  A little after 2 miles I crested the uphill and a volunteer yelled to "Keep going - it's all downhill from here"!  I was not happy about that - I knew it was not downhill from there!

As I was about a half mile away from the finish I saw my mom walking.  She stopped and quickly snapped some pictures before continuing on her way!  The walkers had taken a different route than the runners - kind of odd but she said she enjoyed it.  As you can see we had the whole road to ourselves by this point as most of the runners were on the way back.  The girl in front of me was in my age group and I just couldn't stay with her.  She ended up beating me by about 15 seconds.



My shoulder had started to ache and I had lost all control of my form.  I felt like I had slowed down a lot but tried to pick up the pace again once I saw how close I was to the finish.  We turned back into the park for the final stretch and I just kept lifting my legs and sprinted in.  I was out of breath and dying but I knew I was within reach of  PR so I pushed it!

I came in 16th place and I was second in my age group with a time of 21:37 which was a 10 second PR!  I wasn't able to get my splits but I know that my first mile was 6:51 and I passed the second mile marker at about 13:56.


After finishing I started walking back out to the course to find my mom!  She was really moving and even sprinted the final straightaway from the finish! She was moving so fast that I missed her and didn't get a picture of her finishing!  I did make her stand and pose after the race thought!


I really enjoyed running this race with my mom on mother's day! I just wish it had not been so cold and windy!  I can't wait for the summer weather when it will be warm for races!  This was my first women only race and I loved it!  I really hope that I can do this race again next year with my mom!!

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a great thing to do with your mom : ) Great job with the race and way to PR! I honestly think shoulder cramps while running are the worst. And I'd have to agree that running with numb toes is the weirdest feeling but I have sadly gotten used to it. 32 degrees is so cold for this time of year!!

Lisa from Lisa's Yarns said...

Well done! That was a speedy 5k! But burr - what is up w/ this cold weather!! It's been the same here in MN.

Bethany + Ryan said...

wow, great job! eeeek so cold!!!!!

Felice Devine said...

Nice PR! Way to go!!!

No Longer Using said...

WOO HOO!!! congrats! your 2 mile practices have definitely paid off not to mention the track work :) keep the races coming :) you're gonna break your PR left and right i have this feeling... BEP styyyyle :) 2nd place, too, woo woo!!! :)

Marlene said...

Congrats on the PR, J!

Great way to start Mother's Day with your Mom!

Anonymous said...

congrats! awesome job! and i feel you with the cold factor -- there have been frost advisories overnight here. craziness in may!

again: stellar job on the race. a pr and 2nd place? YAY :)

Molly said...

what a great way to spend Mother's Day, and congrats on that PR!!!!

I could not believe it snowed yesterday....we made a fire in the fireplace!

Anne said...

Congrats on a great race...wow, you are fast! How cool that you were in a race with your mom :)

I actually ran my first 10K yesterday and it was freezing here too!!

I Run for Fun said...

What a perfect way to spend Mothers' Day! Awesome PR too!

Suzy said...

Wow, so cold! Congrats on the PR!

Chelsea said...

Boo on the snow. We've had some freezing temps but fortunately no snow. Congrats on the PR. What a fun Mother's Day.

Jamie said...

Congrats on the PR! Sounds like a great way to spend Mother's day!

ajh said...

I LOVE women only races. There is a woman only (and one lucky guy) half marathon in Maine that is very fun.

Nicole said...

great 5k lady!!! sounds like a super fun way to spend mothers day with your mama!!! <3

Lindsay said...

How awesome what a fun way to spend Mother's Day!

EndorphinBuzz said...

Good work on a new PR. Your mom must be so proud :)

Anonymous said...

I cannot believe you saw snow in May!! Great race and PR!

Jeri said...

way to go!!!! 10 second PR is HUGE! And an AG award to boot. Awesome awesome job. :)

Aron said...

AWESOME job - PR and 2nd in your AG!?!? FANTASTIC race :)

ihaverun said...

Congrats on a great race and PR!! What a perfect way to spend Mother's Day!

Amy said...

Way to go on the PR! That's awesome!

RunToTheFinish said...

ha, it's all downhill..why do people say that!!

way to go on the PR and woot for mama

Glenn Jones said...

Hmmm. Let me check something here. My calendar says May. Snow?

Way to go! A PR is a PR! And way to get mom out there too!

Kim said...

Yay! Congrats on the PR! (Boo on the cold!)

Why do volunteers say things like that "it's all downhill," "you're almost done"... when they are wrong? I bet volunteers who have actually run races don't say that sort of stuff ;)

Runner Leana said...

Congratulations to both you and your mom! Sounds like a great way to spend Mother's Day. Nice job on the brand new PR!