In addition to my weekly half-marathon training recaps (although I'm skipping last week since I did nothing beyond this 5K, I KNOW), I've also decided to recap each race I run. (You can see my last race -- the Rahr's 5K -- recap here.)
It was the Vampire Run's first year, which meant there were certainly a few kinks, but I was eager to run an afternoon race since my half has a 5:30 PM start time. I gathered my Running to Drink crew and nearly all of us signed up or showed up. (We have a Facebook group where we post runs, happy hour invites, links and tips, and it's been awesome.)
I hadn't run in a week before the run, and I never know if a few days off will recharge my batteries or suck the will to run straight from my bones. This was a little of both.
The run kicked off fine, although my entire group shot out in front of me. I couldn't find the energy to push myself much at the start, but I'm glad, since I needed that saved energy for the last half mile, WHICH WAS AWFUL.
A few pros:
- The course. It was through a local park and on a trail, which was nice, and it was well-marked (I've run quite a few races where the miles aren't even marked; what the hell is UP with that?)
- The weather was amazing.
A few cons:
- One water station. Most 5Ks have just one water station, and I'm sure this is a budget issue (right?) but, man, I need more water than that even for just three miles. I think I'll try running with my own water next race.
- The kids. I know! I sound like an asshole, but (generally speaking) kids aren't the most considerate runners. They sprint at full speed and then stop right in front of you to walk or tie their shoes or talk to their friends or dance (I wish I were kidding).
- Timing. They timed us on the gun time, not our chip time, so I have no real idea what my time was.
My time:
Gun time: 31:26
GPS time: 31:54 (Of course, I forgot to hit stop until I was at the post-run water table chugging water, so....)
Then my entire group went to eat Mexican food and drink margaritas because our Running to Drink name isn't about gatorade, as if you thought it was.
Next race: A local 10K in two weeks