I was told about the Thin Mint Sprint 5k by my aunt, Doreen. This race made me happy for so many reasons. The first being that a while ago I had to beg Doreen to run or to do a race. Now SHE was the one finding races and telling me about them. She knew of a race I didn't know about? I was happy to have this sort of positive influence. The second reason was that the race was in Safety Harbor. The last race I had ran there, the Best Damn Race, was on a really scenic course, so I was happy to be running in an area that I knew would be pleasing to the eye. The 3rd reason I was excited was that it was a Thin Mint Sprint! The top 50 male and top 50 female finishers were to win a box of girl scout cookies. I knew I probably wasn't fast enough to win a box, but that was still great motivation. If anyone knows me, I will definitely run for cookies. And lastly, I was excited about the medal! most 5k races don;t give you a medal. I have to admit, I love a little race bling.
Of course I registered for the race. In fact the race was on my birthday weekend, so I decided to do it for my birthday. That's what I wanted - to run the 5k for my birthday. Just another indication that I am officially a runner. What do you want for your birthday? I want to run!
On Saturday I woke up early with race day excitement. I had not run a race in a while that wasn't themed (color run, flavor run, etc) and was excited to run a normal 5k. I met Doreen at her house and off we went. We got to Safety Harbor around 7:30, said hello to a few friends, and waited around by the start. It was a beautiful morning!
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| Doreen, me, Connie |
There were cookies at the start line ready to lead us all through the streets of Safety Harbor. The horn went off at 8am and off we went.
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| At the start |
I felt good for the first mile, and it was a great view running by the water. I felt strong, and I kept a pretty good pace for mile one. As usual, however, I started off too fast and started to get a little burned out during mile 2. I didn't stop at the water stop (which I thought there would be one of, but surprisingly there were more), and I started to regret it when the sun started to blaze down on me. It wasn't as hot as usual, but I do prefer cooler running temps. Whenever the sun is beaming, my time suffers.
Fortunately for me there was more than one water stop - unusual for a 5k, but it was very beneficial. I stopped at the 2nd water stop and was glad i did. I felt better after rehydrating and pushed along.
During the 3rd mile I knew I was going slower than I had hoped for, but I was still happy that my time was better than the first time I had stepped out to run 3.1 miles since I hadn't really been training. I was out there trying my best and that's all that mattered.
I finished the race in 33:36. Not fast enough to get a box of cookies, but I ran my 5k, and I was happy.
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| Finishers! |
Doreen PRed, and also ran a goal of getting her 5k under 40 minutes! 38:50!
I also ran into Denise , who had placed in the top 50 and won a box of thin mints.
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| Denise, her thin mints, and I |
I had a great time and I'm looking forward to my next race - The Race for a Cure 15k challenge on Oct 5th!
