…that running life!!! At least I have been this month, and
quite by accident! This month I participated in the Clarksburg 5K, the DC Challenge , and the Crystal City 5K. This is particularly noteworthy as I have
long said that I am love to run more than I love to race AND that I don’t like
5K races that much. My disdain for the 5K may stem from my first “adult” race
experience, the Hot Chocolate 5K. You can read about the disastrous event here.
But, peer pressure is a bitch, and so many of my Black Girls Run! buddies are
into racing, so I have been caught up in the fervor. Okay, so I got folks
together for the DC Challenge, but that was more of a scavenger hunt than a
race… I have a dream to one day do the Amazing Race…and Survivor…and Real
Housewives of Atlanta…but I digress. So yes, this month, I have been pinning on
bibs and running through the streets in two states and a federal district. I’ll
describe the two 5Ks, since the DC Challenge was not a run. It was loads of
fun though!!!
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| This is me before the Clarksburg 5K. |
The Clarksburg 5K was crisp, hilly, early morning race in
the northern part of Montgomery County, MD. There were probably 15 BGR ladies
running in that race, and we had a cheer squad of about five more on the
sidelines. I ran with K., a vegan supermom. It was her first race, and while she
is a strong runner, she needed to get acclimated to running for speed and time.
The hills were somewhat of a challenge, but since I do all of my runs on hilly
trails, I don’t get too daunted by them. At the last mile, maybe a quarter into
the mile, I realized that I had a lot of reserves left and decided to push the
pace. Before that, I was not really racing, just running, but I decided to speed
up and see if I could finish in under 30 minutes. I ended up finishing in 30:30
(the last ½ mile was straight uphill, yo!) which was the fastest that I had
done a 5K in a long time, until…
The Crystal City 5K I basically did on a whim. I had told B.
and R. that I was going to run the Friday evening race and then hang out with
them in the ritzy Arlington, VA neighborhood, but up until Thursday, I still
had not mentally committed (hah) to do the race. I finally signed up and got my
mind ready to run on Friday. I had already run that Tuesday, Thursday, and was
planning on running that Saturday and Sunday too, so my running cup was, yeah,
runneth over (okay, that’s enough puns for this post).
The Crystal City 5K is actually a series of 5Ks that take
place each Friday evening in April. B. had done the first one, and B., R., and
I were doing the last one together. I decided to race this one, as it was
pretty flat, and see if I could finish in under 30:00. The weather was perfect
and the crowd was enormous. For the first few minutes, I was doing way under my
ideal pace, but once I was able to push through the crowd I was able to settle
into a nice race pace. My race strategy was to do negative splits, which I
thought would be easy since the first part of the race was so slow. But during
mile two I started to get side stitches…they were very mild, but it kind of
freaked me out. When I was a high school runner, I used to get horrible side
stitches, which my coaches never helped with (I was not a top runner, so they rarely
paid attention to me). Since I started my adult running, I have not really had
them, and it has made running much more enjoyable. So to feel them coming on, I
was afraid I would not be able to complete the race, so I had a slower 2nd
mile.
By mile three I was feeling better, and, honestly, wanted to
be done with the race, so I started increasing my speed. There was another
sister there who looked about my age and had short hair like mine who I was
leapfrogging with. At one point, she gained on me and held steady, just a few
yards ahead. The competitor in me came out, and I knew that my goal was to beat
her. My strategy is to let my target run ahead of me, just a bit, so that she
acts as a pacer. Once I am comfortable with that pace, I increase my pace, by
as much as I can, to make the distance between us a far as possible. I then
hold and get comfortable there, but then shortly increase some more. I
visualize how demoralizing it must look to see me getting further and further
ahead (I got a feeling that she was racing me too, as she kept kind of looking
at me throughout the race) and that pushes me to go even faster!
By the last 100 yards, I was so close to the finish line,
and who do I see but my girl R. who I have nicknamed Speedy Gonzales (I hope
that’s not racist…PC Police give me a pass for that please). I picked it up
even more and I turned the corner, passed her, and sprinted to the finish line.
I am totally aware that beating R. will probably not happen too often, but she
was my motivation for pushing it that last bit. There was a guy at the end
yelling, “Finish Strong, Red” (I’m pretty sure he was talking to me) and I ran
full speed through that finish line. It felt like cross country all over again.
My GPS watch and B’s watch said that we ran 3.3 miles, but
officially, it was a 5K (3.1). I finished in 28:49 an adult PR (I think I ran
25-26 in high school…I used to feel so slow compared to the 21-22 girls and the
18-19 boys). My pace was 9:17, and I was 917 out of 2,018 runners and 351 out
of 1,101 females.
I truly enjoyed myself at that race. I definitely want to do
more 5Ks, if just to use a speed exercises. My next goal is to finish a 5K in
28 minutes…that means I have to run at 9:00 pace, which actually means starting
fast and getting faster. I think that if I start the race and 9:45-10:00 and
then negative split, I can get it. I will practice with that during my speed
runs. It’s fun to have goals to focus on during the runs.
After the race, the three of us and one of B’s friends hit
Noodles and Company and then Hamburger Hamlet. HH was the official after party
spot for the race, and I was able to score a free Budweiser for myself and a $5
hamburger to bring home to my son. I am not supposed to drink until I hit my
next weight loss goal of under 165 lbs, but I went ahead and had the beer since
it was “free dollars” and I love a free drank! After running a PR, I deserved
it!
I don’t have any more races planned until September when I
want to run a local half marathon (I still need to sign up for that one). I
would not mind doing a few early morning races though…I am going to look for
some races to do, at least in May and June. Stay tuned…
Be blessed,
Mae
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