I learned this last weekend what skirt NOT to wear on my 8.7 mile leg of Ragnar. On Sunday I had the great idea to run the Hot Chocolate 15K. My training plan (for the 1/2 Marathon in May) called for a 9-10 mile run over the weekend. So, a 15K would fit that bill and ensure that I actually ran the required miles. Not only did I run it but I convinced Hubby, BRF (Best Running Friend), and San Diego Ragnar Teammate to join me in the "fun". What we didn't take into account when looking was possible injuries, minimal training by all of us the prior weeks, and the hills. Oh the Hills of this run! In case you have never been to Downtown San Diego, there are some MAJOR hills when you go from the harbor area up to Balboa park.
Let me just give you a review of the race. I know you are dying to get a recap of the race. We got to the starting area with plenty of time to watch the last of the 5Kers start. It was an awesome day for a run with the temp in the low 60's, overcast and slight humidity. We all had time to use the bathroom and get in the corral. We are all slated to start in different corrals so split the difference and lined up in the middle one. The gun goes off and we begin the uphill climb (that lasts for the first 3 - 4 miles). SD Ragnar Teammate and Hubby are faster than my BRF and I so they were in front of us. I was able to see them and keep up until mile 2, but then I had to slow down and focus on the hills. We made it to mile 3 and decided the hills were winning. We never got in a good groove for some reason. At that point we decided we just needed to have fun. At around mile 4 Hubby was waiting for us. His lack of training showed up and he decided to keep his promise and wait for me. We then ran/walked our way to mile 7. At this point I realized that I had worn the wrong clothes, other runners will understand and non runners reading this just trust me it matters! (I will not make that mistake in 10 days!). Around mile 7 we also finally hit the downhill section of the course. I am proud to say I was able to run the last 3 miles and finished just under my goal of 2 hours. In fact when I look at my splits it cracks me up! Here are the official results:
Results
1 hour 59 minutes 48 seconds
Splits
| 5K - 48 minutes 15 seconds |
| 10K - 1 hour 30 minutes 19 seconds If you don't want to do the math the above numbers show that I finished the last 5K (3.1 Miles) in 29 min 29 seconds. Thank you that is the fastest 5K I have ever ran! I am not really happy with the first 10K but I do like the last 5K numbers. At this point I am looking forward to the 10 miles I am scheduled to run this weekend. I took this run as a lesson learned. I am learning to be joyful when I run, not complain when my legs feel like lead or I can't get in a groove. I enjoyed talking with my friends, looking at a part of San Diego I don't normally see, learning what not to wear for Ragnar. All these things ,and to be thankful for the chance to just be out and move. Because while my 15K time is the same time that Hubby usually runs a 1/2 Marathon, it is still faster than it would have been for me a year ago. It is also faster than the time I would have if I hadn't entered the race at all! Okay, I will stop boring everyone with my lessons learned and move on to planning for Ragnar, hhmm, what food will I need and what should I pack?? I have discovered a few things NOT to pack, but that doesn't help to determine what I SHOULD pack! Time to do some Pinterest and Blog research :-). |
