Not being a drinker, I did not care a whole lot about the race starting and ending at a local brewery, but I'm sure many others thought that was absolutely fabulous and it seemed like a fun little environment to be in, you know, if drinking is your gig. I couldn't believe that I was seeing people chugging beers at 11am, before the race. Ick! I can't imagine that would feel too good in the stomach while running...but then I saw a couple of them WALKING to the finish line past the 40 minute mark, so that explains a lot. Note: latest start to a 5k ever..scheduled for 11:30am start...ended up 11:40am...personally I like that better than the 7am starts, but I guess they both have their perks.
I learn a little bit more about running with every race I run and lately I've been very aware (obsessed, maybe?) of the measuring of the routes. I'm specifically aware of this because of my obsession with getting a new PR (every time I'm out there - I know this is bad). The Shamrock 5k was advertised as a 5k but then just before the race the announcer said it was "5k-ish"...ugh...why why why does this keep happening to me? I've run two 5k races at a park near my house and both have come up short at 3 miles even. On the bright side, I really appreciated knowing up front for the Shamrock run.
I had been trying to extend my running intervals prior to this run, hoping to ultimately improve my time so when I set out on this race, I had planned to run the entire first mile and see how I felt. I was so happy to report that even though it was a bit challenging, I managed to run that first mile and at a 10:12 pace even. Happy!!
The 2nd mile was my slowest (hah...no surprise) at 11:11 and then the third mile I was able to pick it back up again at 10:43. The race course ended at 2.85 miles so I just kept on running until I got my 3.1....again, obsessed with a PR...and thankfully I was rewarded with one, so I'm glad I ran the little bit extra. For the longest time I never thought I'd finish under 35 minutes...hooray. Time to set a new PR goal...
Remember all that pain and trouble I was having with my foot and shoes...well, go figure I got rid of the "fancy" running socks, back to my cheap plain white COTTON (!) socks and tada...the pain is GONE! I also transitioned into my newer running shoes...not a fan of the color choices this time around for the New Balance 860s...*sigh*
I sure do love this shot of me and my little leprechaun after the race.
And note that cute little medal is also a bottle opener...handy!
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