Chris got home from work at 5am, just as I was getting up. So in other words, he didn't get to go to bed. I got the boys up at 5:30 and let me just mention that Owen is NOT a morning person. Never has been, and I'm guessing that he never will be. I hate waking my kids up. They're 9am risers :)
We managed to get everyone into the car and at the course by 6:30am. Here we are at the start/finish line:
My mom and I had registered for the 7am wave so that Chris and I wouldn't be running at the same time. Chris watched Owen while I ran, and then we switched when it was time for the 10k to start.
I took the last couple weeks off from running to prepare for this race. Interesting concept, I know! I needed to give my stress fracture some time to heal and I didn't want to risk re-injuring my calf. So I've been riding my bike instead. My plan worked, because I was pain-free for the entire race.
Roughly 120 people requested the early start time, which was perfect. There were enough people to make it feel like a race, but not enough to make the trail crowded. There were 1200 people registered for the 5 and 10k races, so it was nice to get started early. The first quarter mile was tough, dodging strollers and trying to find a comfortable pace. But after that first little bit the crowd spread out and I was good to go. Shortly after that I peeked at my Garmin and was pleasantly surprised to see that I'd already run a mile. Piece of cake! The next mile was just as easy and I actually started to get bored. So I started looking at my Garmin again and did some quick math, and realized that I could probably come in about 2 minutes faster than my goal. Nice!
In addition to time, I also wanted to pass people in my final mile. There was a mom and her two sons in front of me for much of the race, so they were my first victims. Then I picked off a girl about my age. There were two women ahead of me that I really wanted to pass but I didn't know if I could get to them in time. But they made a mistake and started to turn the wrong way, so I got my chance! I might not be very competitive as a runner, but I still have plenty of that athlete "killer instinct" in me :)
Before I knew it, I was coming into the finish line to loud music and lots of cheering. Done! Almost two minutes better than my goal!
My mom (with Logan in the stroller) walked the 5k with her friend. Logan fell asleep. Must be nice :)
Chris ran his 10k and took about 4 minutes off his previous time, so we were both th
rilled about that! He was tired from lack of sleep, so I'd imagine he would have done even better if he'd been rested. The 10k course was the same as the 5k, but they ran it twice. He said it was a little difficult to pass the start/finish line and run the course again. Not difficult physically, but mentally. The poor guy really needed some sleep!
And finally it was time for the kids race. This race was in honor of Lise's unborn daughter, Faith Marie. They had the kids lining up by age, and Chris made the
decision to put Owen in the 4-6 group even though he's only 3. Chris did this for two reasons: he wanted Owen to run a longer distance, and the younger group just seemed too chaotic and unorganized (plus many of the kids were cranky and crying). This decision ended up being the right one because Owen had a blast running the longer course! He thought it was so cool that he got to wear a race bib like ours, and he made a big deal about stretching beforehand. What a big kid! He received a nice ribbon at the end for finishing.
When I decided to run Ragnar last year, I had no idea how addictive racing would be. I am running at least three more 5k's this year and will work up to 10k's. Chris has joined the fun, and now we're involving our kids as well. Honestly, what an awesome way to spend time with your family!
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