Believe 10K Race

Cold doesn't even begin to describe how the morning started out!  It was a chilly 32 degrees when we arrived at the race!  Brrr.  It was so cold that 'Frosty the Snowman' made an appearance...

Have I mentioned that I am not a fan of the cold?  And especially not running in it.  Great idea of a race Kim ;-)  Just kidding, we had a blast!

We got lined up and started out a little fast, but I like running a fast (for me) first mile because it gives me a little leeway in the next 5 miles.  And at the start, a seasoned runner of this race told us how hilly it was.  And he wasn't kidding!  3 BIG long hills!  Ugh, hills....AND not to mention, the finish line is at the top of a hill.  Lovely. Check out these hills:

The green line shows the elevation change...YUCK!  Have I mentioned I hate hills?!? 

I went with the goal of finishing the race (#1), running the entire thing (#2), and hoping to do it in under an hour (#3).  I managed all those goals in addition to making this time my PR (personal record) for a 10k. 

Stats:

Average pace was 8:36 per mile.  Finished with an official time of 53:32.  Got some great stats from my Garmin, which I love love love having all these stats.  It amazes me!  Although I was constantly looking at my watch every couple minutes, it was a nice distraction from the cold, my numb feet, and my aching hip(s).  LOL.

Other stats:  I came in #74 our of 210 people (men & women).  #25 out of 111 female runners.  And #4 in my age group, I was almost a full minute behind the third place finisher, oh well!  Perhaps one day I will get some bling :)  LOL. 

After the race, we headed to a local coffee shop in downtown McKinney (which has some very neat little shops!).  So, once I got my delicious zebra mocha, I was in heaven.  Then, I couldn't pass up a donut.  Yum!  So worth running 6.2 miles ;-)

 

Despite the cold weather, hitting a bunny on the way, and the hills, we had a wonderful morning!  ;-)

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St. Louis Pumpkin Brew 5K

Last weekend, I took a quick trip back to St. Louis to see some friends.  All by myself.  Traveling by myself was easy and painless.  But I felt like I was always forgetting something or someone.  And it was quiet.  LOL.  I had a great time.  

First of all,  I love St. Louis.  Just look at this amazing arch.  Love it.

And I talked Kelly & Cheryl into doing this fun 5k race with me.  I had never ran with either one of them, so I was excited.

Kelly wanted to finish in around 30 minutes and Cheryl had set a goal of 28 minutes.  I was just excited to run.  So, we set off and ended up running a lot faster than originally planned, but I felt great.  Kelly was thinking bad thoughts about me the entire race since I told her not to bring her iPod and that I would talk the entire race.  Oops, sorry Kel.  We got separated at the start.  However, Cheryl got to listen to me talk for the first 2.5 miles.  Here is how I finished: time of 25 minutes and 28 seconds.  I came in 6th in my age group, 68th overall out of 438 people.  It was a pretty flat course and a lot of fun. 

After the race beer...YUM!

Then I met up with some of my favorite girls for margaritas and Mexican food.  What a great night catching up with everyone.

 Such a fun weekend catching up with friends and hanging out.  I sure missed my boys though.

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