Hebrews 12:1b, 2a
Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus . . .
This morning I raced my first 5k in Baton Rouge in over 4 years. I found the race online a couple of weeks ago, and decided to run it to test my speed. (There are NO hills in Baton Rouge!) :-) But as the week wore on, I started to talk myself out of it. "Too much of a hassle," "legs feeling sluggish," and "I'm tired," were a few of my complaints. But, my biggest cheerleader (thanks, Mom!) talked me into it yesterday morning. "I really want to be there to see you run," she said. And after I tried a couple of speedy intervals on the treadmill, I figured that my legs were up to the challenge, and I decided to do it. It was going to be fun! And the weather was supposed to be nice, and the kids would have fun looking at the trains, seeing the old State Capitol, and watching the fountains at the Shaw building.
I did not sleep well at all last night and woke up feeling like I'd been hit by a truck, and my legs felt really stiff. But I was ready to not only beat my 5-year-old PR (20:30), but try to finish under 20 minutes. Eeek! [FYI: a sub 20 5k = running 6:26 minute miles back-to-back for 3.1 miles. And speediness is not my strong point. It was going to hurt!] But, above all, my goal was to run the best that I could and have a good time!
Mom and I got the kids up early and they ate their breakfast in the car on the way to the race. I missed pre-registration yesterday (oops!) so I left the kids and Mom and jogged down to the registration booth. This was an inaugural race, so there were very few people there. I got my race number, and found Mom and the kiddos. Buttercup is teething and doesn't like being separated from me, so Mom whisked her and Oliver off to look at the freight train car on the Capitol grounds while I did my warm up. It was a very humid morning (Texas summers have made me weak!), so I picked up a water bottle to carry with me and splash on my face while I was running.
Then I looked around, ready to go, and . . . there was no activity anywhere indicating that there was going to be a race any time soon. I talked to another woman near where I was stretching, and she said she didn't know when the race was starting, what the course was, or where the finish line was. So we chatted until one of the runners said, "Hey, runners, over here!" and motioned for the crowd to follow him. There were only 4 people lined up in the front -- an old guy, a man in his 40s wearing bike shorts, a college-age guy with an iPod, and me. Then someone said, "Okay . . . runners, GO!" And we were off.
My first goal was to not go out too fast. I wanted to PR, and, as I've discovered through trial and error, the best way to not PR is to try to run with the big boys for the first mile of the race. However, this race was so small that I was one of the big boys, LOL! Bike Shorts Guy was in the lead by several seconds, and I ended up in step with iPod Guy. Old Guy dropped back immediately. I kept my eyes glued to my Garmin to make sure that my pace stayed around 6:25-6:30. I felt like I wasn't going too fast, which seemed about right, because I knew that I would definitely be feeling the pace in the next mile! There was a slight incline at the end of mile 1. I was the first woman and third runner overall at this point.
Mile 1: 6:36
My second goal was to keep my pace consistent. In other 5ks, mile 2 has been the toughest. But in this race, we had a slight downhill in mile 2, which helped me make up some time. IPod Guy dropped back around the middle of mile 2, so I was the second runner overall. The guy on the lead bicycle started cycling around me, giving me pointers and encouragement. At this point, I kind of thought that I could not only get a sub 20 5k, but I might also be able to beat Bike Shorts Guy and win the race overall.
Mile 2: 6:06
My third goal was to finish under 20 minutes. But, I think I went through mile 2 too fast and my legs were just d-o-n-e. And I was h-o-t. Bike Shorts Guy was picking up speed, and I was slowing down. The guy on the lead bicycle noticed me falling behind, and he said, "Hey, hand me that water bottle! Use your arms!" He grabbed my water bottle and I started working my arms, hoping their momentum would pull me faster across the finish line. But I was tired, and I gave up. The guy on the bicycle said, "Okay, half a mile left, you can do it! Here's your water!" and then he dumped the rest of the water bottle on me, LOL! It was hilarious because I was expecting him to hand me the bottle, not dump the water on me. But it was definitely what I needed at that moment!
Mile 3.1: 7:31
Finish time: 20:13. First woman overall, 2nd runner overall. So, I didn't get my sub 20, but I have a new official PR!!!! For the first time in over 5 years!!!! Thank you, God!
And thanks, Mom, for motivating me to run this morning!
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