Independence Day 5K

Short version of the race:

Time: 29:22 Not a PR, but not too shabby.

Long version of the race:

I got up at 5:15 am in order to have a cup of coffee and enjoy a Cliff bar for breakfast before heading out the door at 6 for the race. I arrived at the festivties at 6:30 and figured 30 minutes before a 7 am start time would be plenty of time to register, get my bib, get my chip, and get to the start line. And while it was plenty of time, I ran into a snag.

As I was standing in line, registration form and money in hand, they ran out of numbers. No more bibs, no more chips, end of the line. Now, I wasn't the only one left standing there in line sans the necessities, and I would've been more understanding if the woman behind the registration table hadn't been such a be-atch. She starts loudly announcing: "You snooze, you lose, people. You should've registered ahead of time. Registration is closed!"

"You snooze, you lose"!?

If race day registration is open, they need to be prepared. Sorry, bitch, I did not snooze (note the time I got out of my sweet, sweet bed), so "fuck you" b/c I'm running a fucking race today. Crumpling up my registration form and tossing it in the trash, I tucked my $20 in my short's pocket and headed for the start line without a bib or chip. I figured I wouldn't be official, but I could still go by the race clock and that was close enough (besides, I've never had a chip time that was drastically different from the clock time).

The start was crowded -- clearly this race was more popular than anticipated -- and in the first tenth of a mile, it was hard to break away from the group. Plus, as can be imagined (it is a holiday today), racers were primarily families with kids. For those of you who know me, or have read this blog long enough, you know that I have nothing against kids (in fact, one fine day I hope to have a few ankle-biters of my own); however, I do NOT like kids in races. Typically, they are unpredicatable: they swerve in and out of traffic, and slow down, speed up, or stop without warning or consideration of those around them. So, I spent the first half mile dodging the little beasts before I was able to break into my own stride.

Time at mile 1: 9:25. Excellent. I was on target for my intended pace. Time at mile 2: 18:40. Again, excellent. But then the sun started to rise and the heat/humidity really began to get to me (I could see it affecting others around me as well). You see, at 5:15 when I rose this morning, it was a cool 75 degrees out -- but it was 90% humidity. That adds at least 10 degrees to the temp, and by 7:20, my guess is that it was easily in the upper 80s -- and sweat is NOT evaporating in that kind of humidity. Sticky, very sticky.

So, I could feel myself slowing in the final mile, and while I was not disappointed by a finishing time of 29:22, it now seems so obvious why my 5K PR was a November race.

After I crossed the finish line, I grabbed my water, and headed out to my car (I'm not really the sort to hang out at after-race activities, especially since I was by myself this morning -- hubby opted to sleep in on his holiday). But, I couldn't find my car. I don't know if it was post-run amnesia or what, but everything looked the same to me. After wandering around the parking lot for nearly 10 minutes, I finally got my bearings (spotted a Starbucks I was certain I had walked past on my way in) and located my car. Plus, the fact that I had managed to not lock myself out of it was an extra bonus.

All in all, it was a fine race, but I guess if I choose to run it again next year I'll have to remember to pre-register so I can "officially" run it.