Siren Freedom Five 5K 2013 (Poopy Mood)

 

Siren Freedom Five 5K (3.15 miles)

29:16

Average Pace 9:25/mile

Do you ever have a day where you get up and you just know it's not your day?  You can't put your finger on what, but something is just... off.  It's almost as if you could listen to Fred Durst sing Break Stuff about 100 times on loop?

Yeah!  Sing it, Fred!  I don't wanna wake up.  And everybody does suck!  I don't even know why, but I wanna justify, rippin' someone's race bib off...!

Needless to say, guess who was in a super good mood to race on the 4th of July?  This girl! 

Me, happy to wake up even from an early age.

So.  Race day.  Hooray (*sarcastic eye roll*).  I didn't even know what my problem was.  It's not that I was crabby, or tired, or upset about anything in particular.  The only thing I could put my finger on definitively was that my motivation was registering at about a -6 on a scale of 1 to 10. 

If you haven't read much of my blog, you're going to think that my race stories always end up grumpy since my last few haven't been super-duper chipper.  Don't worry - I do actually enjoy this stuff.  It's just that every so often I have a day like this.  I think we all do.  And for lack of any better way to describe it, I just call it a poopy mood day.

So despite the fact that it's the 4th of July and I have a wonder woman costume picked out, I stuff down my standard race morning banana and proceed to the start line of the Siren Freedom Five in a poopy mood snit.

I guess it wasn't 100% poopy, I look somewhat happy here:

As I watch the revelers, and with my husband keeping me company pre-race, my poopy mood starts to loosen up a little.  I mean, how can you not crack a smile when you see people looking like total asses in 'Murika gear?

I actually saw one guy wearing a stars and stripes vest... with nothing underneath.  Well, shorts of course, but no shirt.  Keepin' it classy. 

In my people watching poopy mood stupor, I had to be quite careful what I got a chuckle out of.  I was in small town Wisconsin, after all, and you know how that goes.  Just because someone has a mullet or a 80's blast from the past outfit on, doesn't always guarantee they are wearing it IRONICALLY... as was the case of the old man next to me running in American flag shorty shorts and nothing else. 

Imagine someone that looks something like this:

I've seen enough belly hair for one summer, I'll tell you what.

I also saw someone wearing a Siren Fire Department t-shirt, and strangely harnessed at the waist to a four wheeler.  I have yet to determine that he was running the whole race in said harness, but I would hazard a guess that he did.  If so ... BAD ASS!  (And side note, thank god that the Siren FD stays fit... I've heard less than rave reviews for some of the FD branches in Minnesota...) 

FD dude looked something like this:

So, as my mood begins to lighten, I people watch and start to mentally "warm-up" for the race.  Then it hits me... pre-race jitters.

WHAT?  WTF!  I have done duathalons, half marathons, and just ran 100 miles in May.  A 5K is a piece of cake, and I've done it literally hundreds of times.  Why do I have jitters?

OH!  DAMMIT!  Reality sinks in.  Now I know why I'm having a poopy mood day.  Because if I don't finally pull off a 27 minute finish, anyone who's a real runner and reads this blog is going to think I'm crap at this.  I don't just want a 27 minute finish for me.  I want it for THIS BLOG.

Woah.  Pressure cooker.  See how much I work to keep this blog interesting? 

Before I can think about it for too much longer, the national anthem is sung and the starting siren is blared.   (Get it?  Siren blaring for the race in Siren, WI.  Har-de-har-har.)  I'm off. 

In a crowd of about 1,000 people, I'm quickly distracted from my race jitters and just go with the flow.  Until...

OMG!  A racing first... a rock just got kicked up into my left shoe.  I'm not even 1/4 of a mile into the race.  Queue poopy mood downward spiral.

I refuse to stop and take out the rock.  I'm on a mission at this point to impress you people with an amazing time.  I jiggle my foot around in my shoe as I run and finally get the rock shifted to a reasonable location.  It's still rubbing around my outer two toes, but I try to tune it out and instead focus on my breathing to distract myself.  Breathe in, breathe out...

Usually, the first mile is the hardest for me.  My body is telling me it was nice to be lazy pre-run, and my lungs are telling me they don't want to work so hard.  I've found that if I can focus on getting my breathing in check while running around an 8:00-8:30 first mile, my 5K time is guaranteed to be a 28 something or better.  I strive for that and focus on my breath.  Breathe in, breathe out...

As I battle with my lungs, the course winds through the neighborhood surrounding downtown Siren, which has a few minor hills (if you even consider them hills).  Then, we transition onto the more flat, open country roads. 

By now the sun is fully up in the cloudless sky, and it is bouncing off the asphalt.  It's not exactly cool with the extra sun reflection. 

Oh, right.  This is why I decided not to run this race in 2012 after finishing it in 2011. 

This race is just going peachy.

Since my breathing still hasn't settled in, I'm a little surprised to suddenly come upon the halfway water stop.  I figure this must be some kind of mistake, but I fear that I will be in a poopier mood if I double check distance or time on my phone at this point, so I resist.  However, since it's hot and I want to test a new trick I learned while staffing the Minneapolis Marathon water stop, I opt to grab a cup of water as I run by.

Yep.  I said I grabbed water on the run.  I can hardly believe it myself.

Usually I don't bother with water on a 5K.  But I was curious to try this trick, and it was hot enough to warrant water.  Plus, good news - it works!  If you squeeze a paper cup flat at the top and drink out of one of the points along the side, it's like a runner's sippy cup.  LOL! Water didn't go up my nose, cause me to choke, or end up as 90% spilled on my chest. 

With my water success, and due to coming to the water stop faster than expected, my poopy mood starts to lift again.  Never mind the fact that my breathing still hasn't settled in and the rock is still in my shoe.

The next mile plus of the race is uneventful.  The course winds through the back roads, past some sort of "smells like death" area, and then back in towards town.  (I can only assume someone's porta-potty was overdue for an empty, or an animal had died near the road). 

When we get near to town, I know the finish isn't too far away... I can see the lake to my right, and I know the finish line is at the park bordering the lake.  My playlist indicates that my 27 goal is likely out, since my victory song is already playing, but I wonder if I have a shot for 28 something.  I kick into high gear ... and just in time, since I see we're on the entry to the park as I round the last corner of the residential area. 

A few seconds more, and I'm close enough to see the timing clock. 

Ugh.  It literally flips to 29 in front of me.  But, I realize I still have a shot to PR if nothing else.  I sprint as hard as I can, dodging people left and right.  If only I had a straight shot...

My foot hovers over the first mat and I see 29:14 flip to 29:15.  I let out a huge "SHIT!"  (Sorry, not family friendly, I know).  I was this close to a PR, and it slipped away right at my finger tips.  By the time my sensor clears the second mat, I've achieved a 29:16. 

You can literally see me go from watching the clock and trying to beat it (above), to being absolutely pissed at my time (below).

On the plus side, though, check out that tricep muscle rippling in the 29:14 photo!  Roar!  Muscle definition!

At this point, my lungs feel like they're going to explode and my heart is racing.  Since the race was chip timed (at the finish only), I snuck through the crowd to avoid the chip grabbers and quietly go to die in the grass.

Technically, I didn't die so much as just sweat my ass off and try to get my breath under control.

My husband finds me "lounging" in the grass, luckily just after the temptations to dry heave go away, so I slowly get up to return my chip and grab post race snacks.  That's when I realize a toe on my left foot hurts like a mother.  That damn rock.  (Sure enough, when I got home, a good sized blister is revealed under my sock).  I try to find solace in a blueberry muffin as we mosey back to the car.

Somewhat frustrated by my finish, I hope that I will be redeemed when the official time is posted.  In the meantime I head home to drown my sorrows in homemade pancakes.  I follow that up with a shower, a change into my new t-shirt, and a nap in a hammock.

When the results email finally comes the next day, I actually am happy, too... but for an entirely different reason.

Per the email: "Congratulations on your finish in the Siren Freedom Five 5K!  Your official time was 29:16, a pace of 9:25 per mile.  You finished 137th out of 471 women and 22nd out of the 85 Women 30 - 39. " ... and I realize, I finished in the upper 25% of my age category! 

But that's not even what makes me the most happy.

I was curious to see how close I was to my previous finish time.  Checking back to the results in 2011, I find out I finished 44th out of 60 runners in my age category, or just barely over the 75% mark.  Even more amazing, my finish time was 32:41, with a 10:31/mile pace.  In two years, I have taken over three minutes off my overall finish time, and over a minute a mile off of my pace... and that's on a poopy mood day, imagine what I would have done if I was in the groove! 

As I consider those results, I think about where I've come from, and where I'm headed... suddenly my poopy mood vanishes, and that 29:16 is pretty ok with me.

I stuff my bright yellow race shirt in the hamper for a wash, and revel in my post race awesomeness.  Now I just need to find a spot on the wall for my new bib, #2058 (my wall is getting pretty full)...

And that's the story of how race bib # 30 joined my collection.  Here's to another race soon... hopefully my blister will be healed by then!

Giveaway Winners!

Thanks to everyone who participated in my first giveaway!

 

As you already know, my sister's Etsy business BellasBoutiqueMN now offers spandex headbands, which you had a chance to win if you subscribed to my blog or shared my Facebook posts this past week. 

And now... drum roll... I'm about to announce two lucky winners, who can choose one headband in any of the following colors:

 

 

#1 disco ball
#2 peacock
#3 purple and black damask
#4 paisley
#5 peace sign
#6 pink red and orange stripes (with sheer gold insets)
#7 blue and white stripes
#8 burgundy and white stripes
#9 navy blue solid
#10 pink textured
#11 black solid

Look at all those fun options!  I prefer the disco ball, myself.


And now, the results!  The winners are:

     Kristin Thompson
     Sonya Krishnan


How to redeem your prize:  If you have won, please message me ASAP with your shipping address and color choice.  I will have your choice mailed to you directly.  Please contact me by 07/12/2013.

For anyone who didn't win but is still looking to purchase, my sister will honor her buy one get one free sale for you  through the end of this weekend.  Please place your order with her by Sunday, July 14th.  Just put the more expensive item in your cart, and write the details of what you want free in the purchasing notes.  Mention my name to make sure you get the special BOGO extension.

Thanks for "playing", and I'll post my July 4th race recap on later this week.  Until then, go get a good workout in!

Holiday Delay...

I hope you are all enjoying your July 4th holiday weekend!

I, being the planner that I am, wrote this post well in advance with the hopes that I would instead be spending my time today enjoying the day off of work - preferably sleeping in, enjoying a lazy breakfast, and then spending my day floating in a pontoon...

Yes, me, two years ago.... doing what I coined as pontoon-oga.  (Get it?  Pontoon Yoga??)  I remember it being quite difficult to hold the pose, despite how relaxed I look.  The wake of passing boats made balancing extremely challenging.  I guess I'm just that zen.

Anyhow!  Being that it's a holiday weekend, I'm sure you're not in the mood to read a long post.  So, this is about all I have to say.  Before I go, one quick reminder about my giveaway.  Today's the last day to enter.  If you need a reminder of what to do, go here.

I hope you enjoy your July 4th holiday weekend, and I'll be back with more exciting posts next week.

Wear sunscreen!

Time to Fry, Fourth of July

OMG, can you believe it is July 4th tomorrow?! 

With all the rain we had in June, and the late ice-out in May, I don't even feel like we've had summer yet... and we're already half through it!  I haven't even started my tan yet.  WTF!

And, I'm hesitant to say it, but I do live in Minnesota... local friends, please don't sucker punch me for saying this... but ugh, YOU KNOW snow is just around the corner.  :-(

This is almost the worst news ever... almost.  I can think of a few things that would be worse:

On the up side, I am headed up to the cabin for a weekend of Freedom-celebratory fun.  And, as you likely have guessed, I'll be kicking off the holiday with a 5K, the Siren Freedom Five.

I ran this course two years ago, and remember it being flat and fast.  Although, I also remember it being quite hot to run due to the asphalt and the July sunshine.  We shall see how I fair this year.

If nothing else, I'm sure I'll have a good time celebrating post race... I imagine the awesomeness will look something like this...

 

Notice the sparklers.  That is pretty much one of the few fireworks I will touch.  While my husband has no fear holding onto the base of a roman candle while it explodes with balls of fire (that's what she said), and although he is happy to light the fuse on a firework blast that would put Disney to shame... I ... well... let's just say an unfortunate spinner/whistler firework shot in an awkward direction when I was a kid, spiraled down a roof line, and pretty much landed in my lap.  While I avoided injury, I've been scarred for life.

That being said:

Enjoy your holiday.  Stay safe, drink responsibly, and get in a workout or two!

I'll be sure to share my race report some time next week.  In the meantime, don't forget about my giveaway.You've only got a few more days to enter!  Hustle up!

Ore-nos

Have you entered my giveaway from Friday yet?!  If not, get crackin'!  In the meantime, here's a blog to keep you entertained...

 

*****

 

 



 

I've been seeing all sorts of Facebook and Weblog posts about the new Watermelon Oreos. 

First off, no - I have not tried them.  And I don't intend to.

In fact, I can't even remember the last time I had an Oreo period... or even a cookie for that matter.  Although I do think I had a homemade dessert bar a few weeks back at a pot luck (hey, it's ok to enjoy on occasion, no hate from me towards responsible indulgence!)

So, why this post?

I recently read this interesting article about the new Oreo flavor, and a few things caught my eye that I wanted to share:



(Quote #1)

"So what makes these new Oreos, watermelon Oreos?  There are no actual watermelons listed under the ingredients. Instead, you'll find a couple food dyes, sugar, high fructose corn syrup and artificial and natural flavors.  Without any actual watermelon in the cookies, Oreo decided to color its cream red and green for the "watermelon" effect. The cookie portion of the cookie is the signature "golden" color."

Mmmmm.... watermelon effect.  Sounds delicious.



(Quote #2)

Article feedback posted on the webpage, from the public, #1: "Someone brought a pack to work.   Nobody in the entire office thought they were the least bit edible.  Until now, I didn't know you could ruin a cookie like that, but I learned something new at the very first bite.  People who are addicted to HFCS and sucrose will probably still eat them if they can't find anything else, but nearly everybody else will put them where they belong...in the trash."

Yep, I can vouch for this.  Not for the watermelon flavor specifically, but my cube neighbor brought in a pack of sherbet flavored Oreos a few weeks back, and anyone who said they tried it said it was nasty... and that's saying something, being that I work with a bunch of aging men who like their cookies and cakes.



(Quote #3)

Article feedback posted on the webpage, from the public, #2&3: "the next flavor will be ribs!" and "Nice! Now when are they coming out with bacon flavored?"

Ugh.  I don't even want to acknowledge these flavors.  Unfortunately, I actually believe they will exist some day, based on what our diet is evolving into.




So, what's my point about all this?

Well, I want to open your eyes a bit... and then, I want to challenge you as well. 



First, the eye opener.  Do you know what a serving size is for your average Oreo snack?  And do you know how many calories, fat and sugar are in that serving size?  Well, if not, here you are:

I'll start with serving size, which is pretty much a joke.  The 34 gram serving size works out to be about 3 cookies, or slightly less - lol, better only eat 2.8 cookes just incase.  (Insert eye roll here).

Honestly, I don't know anyone who would eat just 3 Oreos and be satisfied.  Especially if the bag is still open and sitting within reach.  So, that being said, I'm going to do an analysis of the nutrition based on a serving of 6 cookies. 

For an average diet of 2000 calories a day (which, by the way, is actually too high for most sedentary, overweight adults), a snack of 6 oreos means you have just taken in:

     16% of your daily calories
     22% of your daily fat
     20% of your daily saturated fat
     78% of your suggested allowance of refined sugars

     *The above numbers are even higher if you are a woman and should be
     consuming the recommended 1500 calories a day.

     **A note on refined sugar allowances: the recommended allowance for refined
     sugars by the American Heart Association is 36 grams per day for an adult male
     (who is also the person eating the supposed recommended 2000 calories a day). 
     Women are recommended to eat 20 grams of sugar.  Additionally, this is still a new
     recommendation and I bet in the next 10 years we'll see lots of research saying even
     that is too high... your the goal should be to eliminate refined sugars whenever possible
     which isn't so hard to do if you cook your meals from scratch and emphasize fruits &
     veggies.


It's also important to factor in nutritional VALUE.  For the above caloric, fat and sugar intake... there is basically no nutritional value whatsoever.  There is very little fiber and almost no vitamins in the cookies.  This means that aside from adding another layer of fat to your belly, your body is receiving no benefit from this food.



And now time for my challenge. 

The next time you see a "new" product with some enticing "flavor", I want you to think about the above. 

Then I want you to picture this:

Versus this:

My hope is that the "real" food item will appeal to you much more than the "flavor", and that you'll make the healthier food choice.

Happy snacking!

30th Post Giveaway! Closes 07.05.2013

Hmmm... today brings my 30th post to this blog.  Can you believe it?  Whoop!  I really can't believe it myself.  I thought I would run out of things to say once I recapped all my races, but I guess not!

I think I need to celebrate.  And why not celebrate with some free stuff?!  I mean, who doesn't like free stuff?

 

In conjunction with my sister's Etsy business, BellasBoutiqueMN, for the next week I am offering you a chance at winning a free prize!

What's the prize, you ask?

Well, remember this post a few weeks back?  If not, go read it because... you're about to have a chance at a super awesome wicking headband!

A few pictures of me, rockin' the bands...

Here's the scoop:

Two lucky people will get to choose any color headband shown here.  Winners will be randomly selected on 07/06/2013, and their names will be posted on my blog the following Monday.


How to enter:

Option 1 - Share my blog post via my daily Facebook link.  You must share it from my original post, or it does not count.  You will be able to see that link ONLY if we are friends on Facebook.

Option 2 - Subscribe to my blog.  If you are not friends with me on Facebook, you will still have a chance to win this way.  (Need help on this?  I've added a subscribe link on the upper right column of my blog for easier access, or you can go to www.blogger.com/home to set up an account and add me manually from there.)


If you do BOTH 1 & 2 above, you get two entries.  Go for the gold, come on!


How to redeem your prize:

This is the most important part.  If your name is posted as a "winner" (I mean, yes, we're all winners at heart... but that doesn't guarantee you a prize), you must contact me ASAP with your shipping address and color choice.  I will then arrange the headbands deliver to you directly.  Winners must contact me by 07/12/2013 or prize will be forfeited.



BTW... good news!  During my giveaway, BellasBoutiqueMN is also offering a BOGO sale.  So, if you see anything in the shop that looks exciting to you, go for it!  Just purchase the higher priced of the two items in your shopping cart and check out.  Then, in the notes section, include details on what you want your "free" item to be.  Easy-peasy, and no extra shipping fees.


That's it.  Good luck!

Rainbow Run 5K 2013 (Pride & Cereal?)

Rainbow Run 5K (3.15 miles)

29:35

Average Pace 9:32/mile

As a happy kick off to Pride Week, the Twin Cities had it's first slew of events this past weekend.  While most of them either didn't interest me, or I didn't have time for them (considering my busy weekend), I did manage to sneak one event in. 

If you read my post last Friday, you know that on Sunday, I ran the Rainbow Run 5K!

So... here goes the race recap / report!

Let's start with the day before, because this will become somewhat relevant to my performance in the race. 

I woke up bright and early Saturday (6am, blech) so that I could eat a light breakfast and have a settled stomach before teaching the 8:30am Instructor's Choice class at the gym.  If you know me at all, you know I am NOT a morning person.  In fact, if I ruled the world, I'd sleep 'till noon every day and all race directors would have gun times after 5pm by law. 

Obviously, I do not rule the world.  Pout!

Anyhow, I taught class, and participated in it pretty much full tilt.  Which was not really the greatest idea given my race the next day, but I was just having so much dang fun doing it.  Oh well, life goes on.

After class, I headed home to freshen up, pack up, and head to the Mall of America. 

I can hear all my friends screaming... WHY?!?!!??  It's true, most of us local Twin Cities folks avoid MOA like the plague.  But, back in April I had a little overnight birthday celebration there, and due to a less than stellar stay at the new Radisson Blu MOA, I was given a credit for a future one night free stay.  With the hotel being about 20 minutes away from the start line of the Rainbow Run (as opposed to 45-60 minutes from my house), I thought this would be as good a time as any to use up the voucher and save myself some pre-race drive time.

Since this is the third year of the Rainbow Run, and since my sister and I have done it every year, she drove down from "up norf" to meet me at the mall.  We dropped our bags in our room and hoofed the mall for over 5 hours straight (actually closer to 7 hours for me, since I got there early to do a few errands by myself first). 

As Kevin from the Office would say, "Man, my dogs were barking" by about 8pm:

So, we wrapped up a late-late-late dinner at Crave, and around 10pm off to bed we went.

****WARNING: Soap Box - I still don't recommend Raddison Blu.  Although it was an OK stay and the staff did their best, their hotel design is AWFUL!  The doors they put on each room weigh about 10,000 lbs and uncontrollably slam shut LOUDLY.  To make matters worse, the hallways offer very little in the area of sound absorption for even quiet convesation.  So you can just about imagine what it's like when people come "home" from 11PM to 2AM on a Saturday night.  End soap box.****

Sunday morning.  BEEP-DING-BUZZ-MOO (insert your alarm sound of choice here)... time to get up!  With a less than ideal night's rest, and stiff legs from the day before, my sister and I suit up for the race and off we go.

Fun fact - a male gorilla escaped his enclosure at the zoo in the late 80's/early 90's.  I was a kid at the time, and remembered the story being all over the news.  Too bad he didn't do it this year and join us on our 5K... *wink*.

With the race starting at 9am, we aimed to get there around 8:30.  I was a little nervous about finding the actual location of the start line, since there are multiple pavilions at Como Zoo and I didn't know East from West from Butt-crack.  And, nothing was signed accordingly, everything just said "shelter area".  :-(!!

After a few circles around the park, we saw an inflatable rainbow arch and assumed that was the start.  We parked along the side of the road and headed towards the pavilion.

As long as we're talking parking... yikes.  If this event grows at all next year, there are definitely going to be some problems.  Let's hope they thought about that one...

The pavilion area was very nice, with multiple shelter areas and flushing toilets. 

One of the shelters had packet pick up, so we headed that way.  Upon check in we were given the option of taking our shirt now or post race.  Since I've been at enough races where I've seen people with shirts reserved via pre-registration get screwed on size, I opted with "now".  Sis and I shuffled back to the car to drop off the goods, and pinned on our numbers while we waited.

If you're a swag-whore, the shirts themselves are very nice wicking material in a gender neutral cut.  The upside was they didn't do the ... less desirable... poly/cotton blend shirt from 2012.  However, unfortunately, the downside was the 2013 shirts are the exact same cut/color/logo as the 2011.  I suppose that's not a big deal for everyone who didn't run in 2011... but I sure would have liked something a little different (even just a shirt color change would have been fine... like grey or tan instead of white again).

We killed time after check-in by people watching, and I know they were watching us back as I got several complements on my skirt as did my sister for her pants.  Based on the crowd, I began to wonder if people really knew why the "Rainbow Run" was taking place.  I think about 25% of the group would have been surprised to know it was linked to Pride instead of something more cutesy like "rainbows and unicorns".  But, whatever ... I'm ok with that - as long as everyone is happy running, that's good enough for me.

By about 8:45, people were nervously milling around the inflatable rainbow arch start, and seemed unclear what to do.  I noticed this race had a lot of newbies who were deer-in-headlights anxious.  This became a problem since the organizers didn't say anything to the group about lining up according to pace, running single file, etc, etc, etc.  Because of this, I had my sister push up with me closer to the front than I would normally choose. 

Surprisingly, at the start, they didn't even do an introduction or anything... there was just an odd moment where an MC walked towards the start like we were going to get a speech, and before the speech could even start, a gun went off!  People looked at each other a little wide eyed like "really?", and then just shot out the gate.  I pretty much lost my sister immediately due to the confusion.

The first 5-10 minutes of the race were a little dicey, somewhat as to be expected.  There were people obviously part of running clubs (wearing matching clothing) running 3 wide, walkers starting out up front, and people zigzagging everywhere.  In combination with a narrow asphalt trail and a wet, slippery grass shoulder, it wasn't so great. 

I lost my cool when a pack of 5 people in coordinating team gear were blocking the trail for around a 5-10' section, making it impossible to pass.  Although I feel a little guilty for doing it, I cut across at a hairpin turn to get around these people.  Whatever, with all the swerving I had to do to get around others, I more than made up the distance.

Racer's etiquette:  PLEASE, if you run a 5K that is called a RACE and is chip timed, don't expect to run along side your friends.  By doing so, you screw anyone who is trying to get their personal best.  If you want to be social, go for a group run on your own.  Don't waste someone else's money by cheating them out of a race they paid for.

After I got past the congestion, I started to enjoy the race course.  The trails around Como Park are very nice, although a bit on the hilly side. 

They also have a lot of shady, wooded areas.  I'm sure this would have been great on a sunny day, but with all the rain and storms we've had lately, we were just lucky to even have the race take place.  Unfortunately, the trees became more of a hindrance on this day, as there were several down along the course due to the rough storms the night/nights before.

The humidity from all the storms during the week previous really started to take it's toll on me just before the half way point.  Since I ran a 5K PR in training the week previous (27:02), I was REALLY hoping to get an official time under 28-29 on this course.  But with everything I did Saturday and the heat / hills through out mile 1, I knew I wasn't going to reach my goal.  I had already sweat through my t-shirt, which usually doesn't happen until I start mile 3. 

Learning a trick from TRexRunner, I decided to come up with some goals during mile 2 to motivate myself.  Mentally, I stewed over my top three:

(1) Finish with a 28
(2) Beat my last race PR of 29:15
(3) Finish under 30

It was around this time that I also noticed the course was somewhat of an out and back.  That was a surprise because they didn't post a course that I could find online, and I had figured that with all the trail space in Como, we'd end up running a loop instead.  On the plus side, it wasn't 100% out and back, since we twisted around on some odd side trails along the way.  And that was good, because there was never a point on course where the trail became too congested with runners going both directions.  Kudos to the person who planned the course!

The last mile had a few wicked hills in it, and I had to scream at myself mentally to force myself to keep running up them.  I REALLY wanted a 28 time, although I pretty much knew I wasn't going to get it at that point.  I pushed as hard as I could up the last hill and then flattened out for the home stretch.

As I came around the corner to the start/finish rainbow arch, I literally saw my 28 slip away.  The clock had just hit 29, boo.  But, to lift my spirits, Lucky from Lucky Charms Cereal was giving out high fives just a few yards before the finish mat.  I slapped on my happy face, and truly enjoyed my high five.  The clock read 29 something, but wasn't sure if I hit goal #2 or #3 with my actual chip time.

There was a photographer at the finish, but I'm not sure who it was, so... if I get access to finisher photos later, I'll be sure to post them!

Once I grabbed my water bottle (no post race bananas??!! WTF!!) and had a little time to wind down, I started to slowly walk backwards on the shoulder of the course.  I debated running back to find my sister and then running to the finish with her... but I didn't want to be demotivating to the people who were struggling to finish.  Instead, I clapped for runners as they came, and offered them positive thoughts.

Soon enough, my sister started around the final bend.  I started yelling at her to "not look like she was dying" because there were "photographers at the finish line".  I (think) she appreciated the joke.  I jogged along with her once she reached me, encouraging her to sprint to the finish. 

Afterward, as we roamed the post race festivities, we found this:

Can you imagine eating Lucky Charms covered cupcakes after balls-out running?  I just about puked at the smell.  But I had to take a picture, of course. 

Instead, I grabbed one of these to take home, just for the novelty:

In the same tent as the cereal and cupcakes, they were giving away another t-shirt.  Since I have too many race t's as it is, I didn't want to throw one that I didn't really earn into the mix.  But, my sister grabbed one, so I did get to see it.  It said "Glad to be _______" on the front and "Luckyto.be" on the back (with a little rainbow).  There were also markers at the table so you could fill in the blank with your own personal statement.  Kinda cute.

And not to be left out, before we left to head home, we took a group photo:




On the ride back to the hotel, we debated the merits of the new race location.  Did I enjoy this location versus the downtown route from 2011/2012?  I'm not 100% sure.  Como was pretty, but there was something neat about running on the parade route in previous years.  The spectators were excited for the parade to start and transferred that positive energy to the racers for one, and I feel like there was more "stuff" to be had at the finish line when we ran downtown (IE healthy post race snacks, better organization, etc).  I think in the end, Como is more conducive to hosting simply due to the on course shade and potential for better organization in the future.  My sister had a good point, too - if they ran the race course in reverse at Como, it might actually be better, as we would get to run DOWN the big hill at the beginning instead of up it at the end.  I guess we'll see what they do for 2014.

And that's the VERY LONG story (sorry!!) of how race bib # 29 joined my collection. It reads "2013 Rainbow Run, #48".  I'm not entirely pleased with my performance, but considering my level of activity the day before and the conditions at the race, I am OK with it.  On this hilly route I was only about 20 seconds off of my current 5K PR, which was on a flat fast course, so at least I can be proud of that.
 
 Here's to another race soon!