Oh ok. I got it now I think.Nah, you got it. It is easy. This round is just like Family Feud where you try to guess the most popular answer. Remember, lowest score wins so @ZellyB is in the lead.
Oh ok. I got it now I think.Nah, you got it. It is easy. This round is just like Family Feud where you try to guess the most popular answer. Remember, lowest score wins so @ZellyB is in the lead.
Congrats on your 5k @OldSlowGoofyGuy!!!
LBI Sprint Triathlon Recap
Short version: I completed my first sprint tri, AND IT WAS SO MUCH FUN! Time: 1:31:56
Long-winded version:
This was a great race for a beginner! There were only about 300 ppl total, and the race officials and volunteers were great about reminding us of where to go and what to do next. It consisted of a 1/4 mile bay swim, 10 mile bike ride, and 5k run.
I can't believe I am about to say this, but my favorite part was actually the swim! I had so much angst about the swim going into it, but turns out, those 2 months of forced swimming due to my foot injury and those couple of lessons with the tri coach really paid off. I was all sorts of excited when I caught up to a few of the guys who set off in the wave before mine! The swim was over before I knew what happened, and I wanted to stay in the bay a little longer. The water temp was 73 degrees, and it felt lovely b/c the day started off quite warmly. Of note, I practiced my open water swimming this summer in a lake. I know that physics tells us this is true, and while I doubt that it could have helped more than a few seconds, I sure felt a lot more buoyant, faster, and smooth in the salty water of the bay. Maybe it was all race day adrenaline and the mild current going in our favor?
Skipping ahead, I thought for sure that I'd be so relieved to finally get to the run, that it would clearly be my fave part of the race, but nope. That last 5k had moments where I could have sworn I was in my own personal mile 18 of the marathon, with its mental struggles and fatigue. =P By the time I was out on the run, the sun was majorly out, and it was freaking hot. I had no idea what my run pace was, as I had set my garmin forerunner into cardio mode, and the display was showing only overall distance and time, and we all know that #runmath gets extra difficult when you are tired. So anyway, I just kept trying to run and repeated various mantras. The "relentless pursuit of forward momentum" comes to mind. I was humbled by the ladies ~30+ years my senior seriously kicking my a$$ (I really enjoyed being able to see the ages marked just under our right knees). I wanted to hug them and have a chat, but they were moving too fast. My 5k time ended up as 31:15, which is good for me, considering that a swim and a ride came beforehand. Haven't run miles beginning in 10:xx since pre-injury, during my last race in April. I guess the swimming and the cycling really helped to at least maintain fitness and aid in recovery!
As you can see, I could ramble on about this for a solid hour, but suffice it to say that the whole experience was quite a different animal than a running race experience, and I can see how this sport could be as addictive as running. What a challenge. What a feeling at that finish line! I think this pic probably says it all. (And, my foot felt fine yesterday, but usually everything feels great at a finish line! It still feels fine tonight, so I am relieved!) Thank you for reading!!
Mill Race 5K Recap
Sorry, this ended up being WAY longer than anticipated. BLUF, if you're in a hurry: 23:06 1st place AG.
Goals/Motivation for running the race: In the past, I've run an average of about 6 5Ks a year. Life, work, and marathon training got in the way, and I realized it's been over a year and a half since I ran a 5K. I also realized I felt scared to run one. Late Friday evening, I decided to remedy the situation. I tossed out sub-24 as a goal. I wanted to find out what 5K shape I was in and see if I remembered how to race a 5K, and if not, start to relearn it.
Location: The race is about 25 minutes away at a county park. The park has a covered bridge, a grist mill and a 1850ish restored village. The race is in conjunction with an annual festival.
Race: It was 73 degrees with 95% humidity at the start of the race. The race is not chip timed, but it's a small race, so not a problem to get up front at the start. The course is a relatively flat loop with 134 feet of elevation gain. It's paved roads with about a mile on a gravel/dirt road.
I used a different method to manage my pace for this race. Normally I just look at the split time every mile and adjust accordingly. On a 5K, that only gives you 2 meaningful adjustment points. For this race, I set up a data screen on the Garmin with average pace and lap pace. I knew my goal pace (7:43). If average pace is at or below goal pace, I'm good. If not (or if average is too far below goal) then a correction was in order. If I needed a correction, I watched the lap pace to make a reasonable adjustment without overdoing it.
I missed seeing the first mile marker, which is always disconcerting. (Oh God, is this the LONGEST mile ever?) I had distance displayed but wasn't paying attention to it, so I marked the first split long, but since I was working off pace instead of time, it didn't matter. The first split was pretty close, 7:45. The second was even better, 7:43. At mile 2, I felt pretty good, so I stopped looking at the watch and tried to hit a pace that I felt like I could maintain for another mile, but not any longer. Last mile was 7:14, my fastest mile ever according to the watch! As is usual for me in a 5K, it was a near-death experience, with the near-death hopefully happening on the far side of the finish line.
Post-race: They had water, Gatorade, Powerade, cookies, bananas, and apples. A bottle of water and a banana and I was back among the living. I don't think I've ever sweated that much after a race. Even after toweling off and a quick change of clothes, I sweated for an hour. I stuck around for the awards ceremony and snagged a 1st place AG. The post-race meal was at Chick-Fil-A, with semi-healthy food and a diet Arnold Palmer. My body almost revolted: 'Don't we get pizza and beer after a race?'
Post-post-race: After a nap, I went back to the festival to meet my college age nephew (DN). I listened to bluegrass music while waiting on DN. He arrived, we walked around and each had a Scooby-snack of a bratwurst with sauerkraut. Then we watched the Civil War reenactment. At first I thought it was kind of hokey, but as the cannons were booming, rifles firing, battle field filling with smoke, re-enactors starting to 'die', it was moving. Especially when you realize how many times, on much larger scales, this scene was played out. For the record: the blue team won! DN and I decided we had enough festival food and stinking heat, so we went to a local pizza place and devoured an 18 inch carnivore special. It was New York style, not sure how authentic. Thin crust, big fold-able pieces, not much tomato sauce. It seemed pretty greasy, but that may have been all the meat piled on it. We quickly discovered that after you fold it, if you tip it forward, the crease made a effective grease gutter, saving a few calories. They had a semi-local IPA on tap so finally my body was happy.
Official Results: 23:06, pace 7:26, 1/6 age group, 14/97 overall. I'm pretty happy with that. My PR, set on a better course in much better weather, is only about a minute less than that. It looks like I did not forget how to race a 5K and my new method of managing pace seems to work.
Old Sweaty Goofy Guy after the race:
View attachment 351619
You should be ok for a 5k, although if it's hot and humid that day, go for the finish rather than the PR, if you aren't used to running in it. My brother ran a 5k with me last April, and even though he's faster than me on average, he runs early in the morning or at night (while my schedule forces me to run early evening before the sun goes down ) and the 10am start along with the above average Temps meant that although he managed to finish just ahead of me, he lost... Ahem.. his breakfast.
Why were you scared to run a 5K?
QOTD: With my recent trip on my mind, which of these two situations are cause more discomfort to your feet:
1. A run lasting 3+ hours
2. Being on your feet from rope drop to the park closing
ATTQOTD: Its option 2 for me by a lot! I just dont get it, I kinda do, but man, my feet kill me at the parks and do not hurt at all when I run. After day one its all down hill. As soon as I start moving around the next morning its like I am right back where I left off. I also had what I was told was the "Disney Rash". By the last day or so it was already almost gone which I thought to be strange, but oh well.
Probably 1 because being in a park all day you are sitting in rides, and shows during that time so your feet get breaks.QOTD: With my recent trip on my mind, which of these two situations are cause more discomfort to your feet:
1. A run lasting 3+ hours
2. Being on your feet from rope drop to the park closing