Race Photo Gone Wrong

I received notice that finish line photos from my recent 5k were available for viewing.  Knowing that such photos of me always fail to impress, I clicked the link with low expectations.  What I found has left me giggling throughout the day.  The organizers included a caveat that photos were tied to race finishing time, so the photos linked to my bib might include others who finished with the same overall time.  Ok, no big deal.

Then I started scrolling through the pictures and quickly realized that I finished with quite a crowd: that guy I chicked right at the finish line, a speedy middle schooler, a 20-something who looked ready to keel over.  Finding myself among the crowd felt a bit like exploring a Where's Waldo book.  Eventually, I found a snippet of my arm, a piece of my skirt, and a glimpse of my face - over someone's shoulder.  The best pic by far, however, was this gem:

Kudos on a great race, sir.

A well-framed photo of this man, who won the 70+ age group and ran a killer race, but definitely not a photo of me.  Fortunately, my friend's husband snapped a photo of me crossing the finish line:

Skirt sparkling, tall form, and from this distance,
you can't see my I-might-puke face.

Needless to say, I won't be purchasing any finish line photos from this event.  What was your best race photo?  Have you ever snagged a good one?

Race Recap: Run for the Hills 5k

On Saturday, I returned to a familiar 5k course feeling a bit unsure and apprehensive, but I left feeling empowered and victorious.  In the week preceding the race, I had my heart set on achieving a new PR.  Come race morning, however, my confidence flagged, and my interest in that goal waned. My body was strong, and I knew I could run hard, but my brain was wimping out big time.

Pre-race smiles with Dan.

Emily and I are ready to go!

In perfect, 60* weather, Emily and I ran a 2-mile loop from our houses to the starting line, which felt very good.  As the starting gun fired, Emily said, "Don't stay with me if you want to run fast.  Run your race!  I'll see you at the finish."  We ran together for the first mile and then separated when she grabbed some water and I went without.  We clocked the first mile in 7:58, at which point I was sure that negative splits would not be attainable.  Logging one sub-8:00-minute mile is huge for me; to add a couple more sounded impossible.

I headed up the first hill, passing several runners along the way.  I cruised through a flat stretch and then a nice downhill, logging the second mile in 7:52.  I felt good as I approached my least favorite part of the course: the hill at mile 2.  Even on this hill, however, I kept my focus, thought about running tall and strong, and I passed many people as I climbed.

By the time I crested the hill and neared the 3-mile marker, I was mentally and physically spent.  I was exhausted, and running fast no longer felt fun.  I rallied mentally by telling myself that I do hard things all the time; this was just another hard thing that I had to do.  It was time to embrace the suck.  Taxed but still pushing, I finished that third hilly mile in 7:29.

Coming down the final stretch, I surprised myself by finding some extra gas in the tank and kicking it into yet a higher gear for a strong finish.  I finally closed the gap on a man I'd been trailing for half a mile and crossed the finish line alongside him.  Official finishing time: 24:24!  I blew my old PR out of the water by 3:04!!

The best cheering squad on the planet!
My generous parents wrangled my kids and my nephews so we could run. 

After refueling, rehydrating, and cheering for the rest of our gang, I ran the 1-mile kids fun run with my 6-year-old.  We had a disastrous experience last year, so I felt a bit unsure as we set off.  He wore a cape my sister had made for him, which inspired cheers from many spectators.  He fed off their excitement and had a great time.  We did a mixture of running and walking, as we had planned, and he was happy throughout.  What a difference a year makes!

Super D. and I are ready to race!

After crossing the finish line with Super D., I checked the standings and saw that I placed 4th in my age group.  I finished 75th overall (out of a field of about 350), and I was the 19th woman.  To say I was ecstatic is to say that an ultra is a little race.  We stayed for the beginning of the award ceremony to cheer for my friend David, who finished 3rd overall.  As we were heading away, David came racing toward us, medal in hand.  "You won 2nd in your age group!" he cried as he handed me the medal.  I was confused but excited.  It turns out that the top two women in my group were 2nd and 3rd overall, which moved me up to 2nd in our age group.  A technicality but still a win - and a medal!  I wore that medal with pride all day :)

Special shout-out to Sparkle Athletic for my blingy skirt.
I think the sparkles gave me speed!

I left the race thinking that this PR would probably stand for quite some time.  Now, 48 hours later, I'm thinking about what speed work I could do next summer to try to top it again next fall...  This is what I love about running: it always pushes us, calling us to be the best that we can be.

Race Goals: Run for the Hills 5k

For the fourth consecutive year, I'm running a local race in the St. Louis Hills neighborhood.  Aptly named, Run for the Hills is an annual tradition for my family.  The race originated more than 20 years ago, and my parents have participated in the event every year since its inception.  Not runners, they walk the 1-mile course around Francis Park, the heart of the neighborhood.  I walked with them for many years until I ran it for the first time in 2011.  I was thrilled by my debut performance - my first ever 5k - and my time from that race has proven tough to beat.  In two subsequent attempts, I've not bested my original time of 27:28.

Though I've been focusing on distance rather than speed lately, I would love to set a new PR on the course tomorrow.  I know I am a stronger and smarter runner now than I was in 2011, and I would love a shiny new PR to prove it.  The course has some hills, as its name would suggest, and the most relentless one comes at mile 2.  I know that hill intimately - my childhood best friend grew up on that road - and I've run it countless times.  Yet somehow it always seems to hang me up on race day.  Tomorrow I hope to keep laser focus on that stretch of the course, forgetting that last year I was passed on it by a woman pushing a double stroller.  Ouch.

As always, tomorrow's event will be a family affair.  My husband, sister, and brother-in-law are all planning to run, too, as is my BRF, Emily.  I want to enjoy the event with them, chat with other runners from the neighborhood, and eat some frozen custard at the end.  My oldest will be running the kids' 1-mile race after the 5k, and I'm excited to be running that with him, too.  (Fingers crossed that this year's fun run will include more fun and fewer tears than last year's.)

While I would love a PR, I will be happy with a strong performance and a time under 28:00.  There, I put it out into the world.  Now let's see what I can do...

Race Recap: 9/15/12

This past weekend, I ran a local 5k, a race I also did last fall.  Three days after the race, I'm still feeling very conflicted about my race and my reaction to it.

In truth, I've not been in training mode of late.  I've been running without my GPS and from my heart more than from my head.  After the stress of this summer, running has taken on an adjusted role in my life.  I'm not running against the clock or with a specific plan; I'm running for me and for my mental health.

Bearing this in mind, I should not have even considered trying to break last year's time.  But I did.  I know that I'm a stronger, faster, and better runner now than I was 12 months ago, and I wanted my race time as hard-and-fast evidence of it.  Alas, I finished the race 2 seconds slower than last year, proving that I am nothing if not consistent.

I should be elated!  Without really training, I ran the course as well as last year when I did, in fact, train steadily for it.  I finished in the top 40% overall, top 25% of women, and the top 32% of my age group.  I laced up my shoes and traveled from the starting line to the finish line, which is certainly an accomplishment in and of itself.  And seriously, Kate, 2 seconds?  Definitely not worth hemming and hawing about.

But I keep beating myself up over it because I could have run better.  I took a walk break right near the end.  I didn't want to stop, but my brain seemed to have no control over my legs - or my bladder, for that matter.  Holy urinary incontinence, batman!  I've never battled with my bladder so much on a run.  I don't feel like I drank an excessive amount before the race, but something was surely different.

Bladder aside, I know I should hold my head up and be proud of what I accomplished.  I crossed the finish line to the cheering of my sweet kids, and then I got to cross it a second time with my son when he finished the 1-mile kids race.

I need to look at it through my children's eyes.  The whole time I ran with Mr. D, he kept shouting that we were going to win and that "the finish line is so close!  We can do it, Mommy!"  The look of joy on his face when he crossed the line was priceless.  And J-Bug, who proclaimed that her 2.5-year-old legs were not long enough to run that far, ran as much as she could and said she was "doing it just like Mommy!"

They were proud of me, and I should be, too.

Finishing out the fun run with Mr. D, age 4.