Saturday, May 26, 2012

Run for Wells

Almost at the finish line, waving at my little guy!
This morning was my third 5k race.  My chip time said I ran the race in 42:17.  I'm not sure how accurate that time was.  There was no chip detector at the start line, the race started about 3 minutes late, and according to my friend Enz's Nike+ it says we ran 5.44k.  It was a pretty small race, so the timing was completely unorganized.  It annoys me a bit because I ran the race to see if I could better my last time, and I can't say if I did or not.  There are just too many discrepancies.  So a touch disappointing.

Puffing along...
I did however, get a technical t-shirt, and the added bonus of running along a real pretty (and hilly) route.  It was a nice challenging run and I did enjoy chatting up some other runners along the way.  My pace bunny was a 7 year old girl named Mercedes who I spent the entire race passing, then watched her get a burst of energy and pass me.  If only she could have kept up the pace the whole way, she would have won!  She was real fast when she got her bursts of energy!  I told her that it was all mental and she could run the whole way if she talked herself into it.  That's around the time she rolled her eyes at me and stayed behind me the rest of the way.
Greeting my boy after the race.
Another added bonus of the race was the lovely road kill along the way.  There was a particularly gruesome raccoon in the middle of the country road, entrails and all spewed all over the place.  I didn't look at it as I passed and kept my eyes on the road, only to see foot print entrails in front of me.  Yuck!  Thank God my stomach was empty, I'd have hurled from the smell alone!
Enz and I just after she crossed the finish line.
 Although the race was for a good cause (Wells in Africa), I'll likely not run it again.  The organization left much to be desired, and there was no medal.  The only way you got a medal is if you placed.  That definitely wasn't happening for me, but there was a young boy (around 10 years old) who came in 4th for the 10k.  He completed in about 44 minutes.  I'm going to find out his name because I'd be very surprised if he doesn't turn into some running star in the future.  Just imagine how fast he'll be when he's 18!
Harley, Tanya, me, Bev and Enz after the race.
We waited around for Pauline to finish the 10k before heading out to Kelsey's for the celebratory lunch.  I was pretty much spent by this time, but had to rush out to the grocery store to buy BBQ supplies for my brother, father and niece who were coming out for dinner.  I'm pretty tired as I type this out and I really should just pack it in for the night.  I have to get up tomorrow morning for my regular practice run at the Running Room!
Pauline coming in from the 10k run.

Pauline and Bev at Kelseys.

Julien and Enz playing Tic Tac Toe.