Race Report: Frostbite Footrace 5K

To say that this race was a milestone for me is an understatement. Which is strange, because the only time I’ve ever considered a 5K to be a “milestone” is when I ran my first one back in 2007. But this race was definitely a major milestone.

This is the first race I’ve participated in since the Washington D.C. Ragnar Relay. The relay was over 5 months ago. And if you’ve been reading my blog since then you might remember what happened that day, and how it affected my running state of mind. It’s kind of hard to explain because I feel great about getting back to running, and I’m doing well, but I didn’t know how it’d be to be back in a “racing” environment. I was nervous. Anxious. A little scared.

But I was also confident. Strange, right? How is it possible to have so many conflicting emotions? See what I’m saying? It was a milestone.

But now to the race report. I don’t know what compelled me to try for a PR, but decided that no matter what, I was gonna leave it all out on the table and give it my all. Honestly, I didn’t think I could beat my previous PR of 26:18. The conditions for that race were perfect for a PR: downhill, 70 degrees, I’d run that same course countless times, and I was in good shape. The conditions for my 5K on Saturday were less than ideal: 12 degrees, slightly windy, ice on the roads, no downhill anywhere, and my nerves were a nightmare.

In the likes of Adam, here are my goals:

A Goal: Sub 26:00
B Goal: Beat 26:18 (previous PR)
C Goal: Sub 27:00
D Goal: Don’t come in last place

So I chose my spot at the start line on 5th Ave in downtown Anchorage, got the iPod ready, turned on Speedy to begin locating satellites (Speedy is the name of my new Garmin Forerunner 110!!!!), then the gun went off! I’ve never been in such a clusterf**k of a start line before. I think every single walker decided to line up at the front. Grrr. I tried getting around a line of walkers, and when I finally did, I ran into a giant orange cone. Seriously. It was tipped over, so my shins went HARD into the bottom of the cone. Ouch. Ouch. And more Ouch. If I would’ve fallen, I would’ve been trampled by runners. This is was my thought process at that moment, “Yeah. That just happened. Effing walkers!” And then about 30 seconds later, “Yup. That literally just happened. How did I miss a giant orange cone?!?!?!”

Bruised ego aside, I kept running. The first mile went by without a hitch. I looked down at Speedy and realized I was running at an 8:20 pace. “Good. This is good. I can do this. Just keep this pace.” At the halfway point, I saw Erin and Jessica, my two lovely friends who woke up early on a Saturday morning to freeze their asses off to watch me run. It was awesome to see them and it gave me a little extra boost of energy.

Coming around the turn, wearing my ninja mask. Click to enlarge.



The last mile was a bit more difficult. I hit a MAJOR wall at about Mile 2.2. I’m not used to such a fast pace, and I seriously wondered if I used all my energy too soon. But I refused to give up. I pushed the pace as much as I could. I knew this last mile would be slower than the first two, but I felt like I had enough of a buffer to still get my PR.

Eventually the Finish Line was in sight, and I gave it that last-minute sprint to the end. PR attained!

Almost there!

Erin caught me in mid-celebratory-jump!

Stats

Time: 25:54 (PR by 24 seconds!)

Place: 35/222 females

Mile 1: 8:19

Mile 2: 8:09 (whoa! Where did THAT come from?!)

Mile 3: 8:33

Mile .1: 0:55 (avg pace 7:49)

I am ELATED!

Also, can we please note the damage produced by my new nemesis, Orange Cone:

This pic doesn't even do it justice...