Firecracker 10K: Race Report

Happy Independence Day! Our family celebrated today by running, eating, and napping. While Brady went with his high school running buddies to dominate a 5K in Delano, the rest of us headed to the Firecracker 2 Mile and 10K race. We ran this race two years ago and put it on the list of races we would like to do again. Katy would do the 2 mile race at 8:00 with some friends, and Mike and I would do the 10K at 8:30. What could go wrong?

The weather guessers have been saying all week that it was going to rain all day today. The forecast for race time was an 80% chance of rain. When I got up this morning, it was dry but while I was getting ready it started to pour. We had already decided that we were going if it was raining, so we loaded up extra socks, shoes, rain coats and umbrellas and headed out.

We left extra early and it paid off with a spot right by the packet pick up and start line. I put on my Wellies and raincoat and we walked over to packet pick up. I’m sure I looked spiffy with my tall, rubber boots and shorts, but I didn’t want to get my shoes wet and muddy before the race even started. Here I am with Katy after packet pick up under the shelter of the band shell.

 As you can see, we are practically the first people there. After a wait in the car, the rain eased up and we headed out for Katy’s race. By the time her race started, the rain had cleared and the humidity set in.

Katy’s friends, two sisters, opted to stay home and I can’t blame them. It was pouring until right before the 2 mile started. Their mom and I had planned to run the 10K together and she still came for the race. She’s a physical education teacher which tells you that she is not easily discouraged. She let Mike have one of the girls’ number so that he could run the 2 mile with Katy and she wouldn’t have to be alone. Now, when we sold Katy on this race, the idea was that she could do it with her friends at their own pace which was sure to include lots of walking and giggling. Mike wanted to wrap up the race with enough time to regroup before the 10K, so poor Katy had to step it up a notch. She did great! They finished in under 19 minutes and I know she ran hard. Here they are with their ribbons after the finish. As you can see, she looks a little distressed. While Mike and I like to run, it’s not Katy’s thing. I give her a lot of credit for coming along and doing it because we asked her to join us and make it a family day. Thanks, Katy!

Time for the 10K. We found some other friends and lined up, thankful that it wasn’t raining. The course was pretty hilly but not overwhelming. Just when I got tired of going uphill, we were rewarded with a downhill. The humidity was the worst, but I tried to remind myself how good it felt to have dry feet and not be fighting against the rain. My friend could have easily run faster, but she very nicely ran with me and chatted, keeping my mind off the fact that I was gasping for air and that my heart rate was approaching 180 bpm. So how was it? It was awesome! Here are my splits according to my Garmin:

Mile 1:  9:12

Mile 2:  9:16

Mile 3:  9:09

Mile 4:  9:29 (this was the hilliest mile of the race)

Mile 5:  9:26 (still hilly, but I was for sure getting tired)

Mile 6:  9:13

Last .36:  9:01 pace

Total time for 6.36 miles:  58:57 or 9:16 per mile. For the official distance of 6.2 miles, my pace was 9:30. I finished 114th out of 240 women overall, and 24th out of 55 women aged 40-49. Not too shabby! Finishing right in the middle of my age group is pretty good for me. The best thing about today’s race, though, has nothing to do with my time. It was that my legs felt so much better than they did at the half marathon a month ago. The pain on the outside of my hip was completely gone. One of my hamstrings is still a little sore, but nothing like the pain I had at the half. My legs felt energetic and it was my breathing that made the race difficult, not the pain in my legs. I pushed myself hard the whole race and felt like I gave it my all instead of hobbling to the finish like I did just a short while ago. I’ve learned my lesson that sometimes a break from running is good. I’m glad that I kept up with my weight lifting and cross training during that time, because I think it helped me feel strong instead of out of shape. Here I am with Mike after the race. Mike is sporting the race t-shirt which definitely has a 4th of July flair.

After the race, we caught up with Brady and had a nice lunch. After getting home and cleaning up, I took a fantastic nap. I love naps. It turned out to be a great day and I’m so happy about my race. I hope your holiday included family, food and napping, or something else that made you equally happy!