On October 8th, we ran the Mullet 5k in Fairhope. The temp could have been cooler but running entirely in the shady neighborhood made it great. We ran it a couple of years ago and it was absolutely just freezing and very cold strong winds. What a difference this time! Off we go leaving in plenty of time...we thought. When we got there, we almost didn't find a place to park. Once we did, we picked up our packets after waiting in a looong line. Time is running out. Pre-registered didn't receive "packets" as you would think (if you are a runner you understand) as they were in another line! All you originally got was your runner's number and t-shirt. When I got to the bucket that held the packets, the lady in front of me got the last one...the LAST one! I mean, they were just sitting out and no telling how many people picked one up that were not even running...come on, people!! They were stuffed and we were hoping for discounts or something like that. Oh, well...all for leaving "early". I thought I'd run to the bathroom quickly before it started but there were so many people I realized I wouldn't have time. Okay...no packet, no time for the potty, no time for a warm up or even a short, fast walk, and barely time to line up. What happened to us?? This is not our first run! All I can say is that from now on we WILL be leaving a lot earlier.
I was really excited-once I got over our inability to arrive in a decent time-to run this one again. Three quarters into the first mile was super and I saw some of the best times I've ever had. Really good running happening. Hard, wonderful pushing. Then it happened. We remembered there was a hill in it, so I was mentally prepared for it...UNTIL I got to it. My memory did not serve me well. Okay, we started up the hill...I'm okay...turned a corner...still okay and still going up...turned another corner...getting tougher...turned another corner...now it's getting harder to breathe and the grade is getting higher! This was one tough nuggie! Having run this before I did know that eventually it would level out. Then just before the third mile, it happened. Wonderful, fantastic level road!! It wasn't long before I regained my strength and was able to finish strong.
I am very proud of the efforts I made to do my best and not worry about anyone else's time. Sometimes we get hung up on "time" instead of evaluating the course, difficulty and ability at the moment. I finished in 27:26 with a pace of 8:46. I was so excited to get 3rd place in my age group. We did not have a camera with us because it was a Point A to Point B race. I was waiting for them to post the pictures taken but as with most all of the races we run in this area, they don't get posted only the results...which you can find here. So here's the photo Kent took of me back at the camper and a close up of my beautiful award.
The awards were made by children in the art community. A lot of running has been happening and I'm gradually increasing my mileage each week. I'm afraid I have broken the 10% rule a lot in the last few weeks unintentionally. This bothers me because I've generally felt good and wake up each day wanting to don my shoes and shorts and hit the road. I can hardly get a run in that is less than 4-5 miles. I know that's not much for some but I'm loving my "base". Need to work on this and actually make a plan that I will stick to or follow one that a friend has shared. I do NOT want to get injured. I'm getting HUNGRY for another marathon...I can just taste it. Maybe that's too near to my thoughts and I must reign in and control myself...time will come.
I have more to share but will in a later post. Until later...
Run 4 It,
My Friends
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