And not only did I finish, I ran the entire way. We haven't gotten the results back yet . . . I was hoping to do the whole 10K in under an hour, but I'm not sure if I managed that. It was hotter this year (not sure what it was at starting time, but it's about 80 now) and more humid, as well as being more crowded. (There were 16,000 runners last year, over 20,000 this year. They say it's the 4th largest 10K in the country now.) Also, having to walk 1.3 miles to the start probably didn't help.
We started on Broad near the VCU Fine Arts building and ran a little way before turning over to Monument. At first it was fantastic. It's really one of the world's great streets, monuments, gorgeous houses, etc. For the race they have bands up and down the median, and the residents all sit on their porches and wave as they drink . . . ah . . . coffee. By the time we slow runners get to Monument the fast ones are nearly finished, so we got to see them in their final stretch.
I did pretty well until the turnaround,then started to drag a bit. Around mile 4.5 I started to regret my existence, and at about mile 5 my left knee started to hurt. (This, though, is progress, as it usually hurts after three miles.) I really, really, really wanted to take a walk break, but I persevered, and finished, oh, probably about midway through the pack. I collected my water, food, Powerade, and trekked another 1.3 miles back to my car.
It really was a fun morning, though (even if it involved getting up at 6 a.m.!) and I have felt not a bit guilty for having laid around all day and gobbled up a burrito bol for lunch.
1 comment:
Congratulations on finishing,
I sure wish it had been cooler; you may have been able to run faster. Aren't you glad that the race is just once a year?
Mom
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