Running Chick

Gravel, giant long hill, gravel, long downhill, more gravel, beach sand, finish. That pretty much sums up this morning's race. I did a lot better than I was expecting myself to do. I was hoping to come in around 51 or 52 minutes and thanks to the last thee miles being downhill, I was able to crank out some really zippy miles and come in a smidge over 49 minutes.

Pre-race: I hung around and waited for the 2nd bus, which was running late. We got the the start at 8:58, the race was supposed to start at 9:00. No warm up for me! Mile 1 & 2: Gun went off, everybody jumped and some women screamed. Pretty funny. The first quarter-mile was on loose gravel. It was like running on marbles. Yuck. People were passing me left and right. I looked back after the turn onto pavement and there were two runners behind me and then I could see the walkers. I figured I was in for my first DFL finish, great. The first mile marker passed and I glanced at my watch and saw 10:08! The second mile was a long grind uphill. Man, that was unpleasant and I was significantly slower - 10:43. MEH. Mile 3 & 4: More freaking loose gravel for the next mile, but it was downhill so I was able to make up some of the time I lost on the uphill section. Then, we were on pavement and it was all downhill from here. I was feeling great and thanks to gravity, I started to pass people. Four people in total, actually. I purposely decided not to show the pace on my Garmin because all I end up doing is obsessing about it, so I didn't realize that I ran this mile in 9:11 until I downloaded it when I got home. Mile 5: I was seriously zeroing in on a 48-ish minute 5 miler until this mile. Part pavement, part gravel and BEACH SAND. What the hell, were they trying to kill us? I barely maintained my pace and was gasping and wheezing and feeling a bit pukey when I crossed the finish line. Man, my finishing photos are going look so hot! I stumbled past Josh who said "Congratulations!" to which I replied "I think I'm going to puke." Folks, the romance is still there! In all, it was a fun, local race. I'll totally do it again next year. Except I'll train more. And do more hills. Go Red Wings!