Yesterday was fantastic!!! I ran a 5K in 32:34....not a personal record (PR) but a time I am happy with. The weather was beautiful and for the last day in December....it was actually kind of warm. I was lucky enough to have my parents come down for the race. They drove out with my boys and I and then took part in the family festivities that the race organizers had set up while I ran. There is nothing quite like having my two little boys standing on the sidelines scouring the crowd of runners for their mom. I ran by them at the start and they were both so excited when I took them by surprise and shouted out to them. That definitely gave me a little extra shot of energy as I took off for the race :)
There wasn't much very memorable about the race itself. The course was relatively flat with just a few gentle hills. There was a good size pool of runners but not so many that I felt crowded. I even took this race as the opportunity to try out the new water belt I got for Christmas. I didn't need it for a 5K but I will certainly need it for the 7 mile bridge next week so I thought I would give it a try and get used to the way it feels and the extra weight. It was absolutely perfect. Not too much weight even with 4 full bottles....didn't get in the way of my arm swing.....and didn't move around while I ran. Should be all set for the bridge :)
Towards the end of the race, there was a point where they were directing the 10K runners off to one side and the 5K runners to the other. It was so strange to not be running the longer distance. I have always run the longer distance. This day....I just went for the shorter....got my 100 miles and greeted my excited children at the finish line. I was so pleased to have my boys standing before the finish. They both spotted me early enough to put out their hands for me to "high five". I was really moving toward the end. Sprinting to get across the finish quickly. I had a moment where I worried I would high five one and not the other. But I got them both :) After crossing the finish, I quickly moved to the side and into the crowd looking for their little faces. They ran up to me and both threw their arms around me to hug me! My 10 year old looked up at me and said he was so proud of me! That's when the tears came. I had thought that I would cross the finish line and tear up at the idea that I had actually run 100 miles this year. But that passed without much emotion. Maybe its because I was trying to get that PR and lost sight of the 100 miles temporarily. Or maybe its because I was focused on seeing my boys at the finish. Who knows? But I do know how amazing it felt to have my son understand what I had done that day....that year....and be proud of me. New goals for the new year to come in another post later this week. For today....just basking in what I did this year.
XOXO - Jenn
As you can tell by my intro...it was not my finest hour. The beginning of the leg felt really good. I ran confidently toward the bridge and even paused on the running trail that led under the bridge to take a sunrise picture (which turned out even better than I planned). But by 1 mile onto the bridge (with 6 miles left in the leg) my stomach pulled a nasty trick on me. I was in more pain than I have ever been in during a run. And with no van support, I just had to keep on running and convince myself that as soon as this was over I just had to kick back until we got to Key West. I was disappointed in the longer time it was taking me to complete the bridge than I had wanted to but I did try to distract myself with the amazing experience I was having. Every once in a while I would look over the edge and take in the wonder of the ocean and the gulf on either side of me (Gulf was on the right and Atlantic on the left). All in all....a slow 9.64 miles but an experience unlike any other I have ever had. Now on to the van to wait for the final four of van 1 then on to Key West!
