Awesome 5K

So it's more or less known that I'm short (5'1"), which means that I have short legs as well. Not exactly built like your typical gazelle-looking runner. For me, running 14-minute miles is pretty much par for the course.

Well, actually, I've been speeding up recently as I've lost weight. But I was still running at least 13:30 miles. Sure, I can run three miles, but they aren't fast OR pretty.

So it was pretty nice to run that 5K today in just under 36 minutes, or 11:42-minute miles, to be exact. I'm really proud of myself, and of Keith, who ran the same pace. It was our fastest 5K yet (granted, only our third race), and I'm looking to beat that in a month when we have our next 5K.

The guy at the the Mile 1 marker had a really nice smile, and was kind enough to say, "It's downhill from here!" I was surprised to learn that, while it wasn't downhill, there weren't any more UPhills, either. In fact, it was a rather pleasant course along the park that wound through the woods, across a bridge and over a wide stream in two different places.

The whole event just felt different, actually. Everyone, from the organizers to the mile marker people to the crowd gathered along the sidelines, was super supportive. We got a lot of cheers, a lot of "Just a bit further, you're doing great!" and a lot of applause. Several kids lined up along the side of the street in the beginning with their hands outstretched. It was so cute. Well, up until they yelled, "Here are the last of them!"

To be fair, we were NOT last. We started out slow, but passed many people up. I personally beat 51 people (including Keith), although that isn't the point of running a 5K. For me, it's about beating my personal best, about facing the fear and the pain and the doubt, and pushing past it.

The guy who took our timing chips at the end was very nice, shook our hands, and told us we did a great job. Seeing that Mile 3 marker come up sooner than I had anticipated was great, so we sprinted the last .1 to the Finish line.

We also got to help out a great charitable organization, got a nifty backpack and t-shirt, and refreshments at the end, which were immediately downed. Water is really nice when you've just finished running 3.1 miles on an 80 degree day.