2 Races + 1 Weekend = Fun

Race #1 was the Jingle Bell 5k for Juvenile Arthritis. The race was in Saratoga which is about 30 mins away. When I woke up the temps were in the teens! I contemplated going back to bed but luckily for me I was meeting a friend at the race and I didnt want to let her down. I left my house at 7:40 and got to the race around 8:15. I got my packet & tshirt (which is an adorable reindeer and says May all your miles me merry! Awwww) and did some stretching. At this point I was FREEZING. I checked the temp from my phone and it was 19 degrees at start! I quickly found my friend and it was time for the race to start. I started out with my friend but I felt surprisingly good so I took off. I will say that this race was the most difficult 5K course I have ever run! It was hill after hill after hill. It was really brutal. There was one really fast downhill that I took full advantage of. Despite the hills I felt awesome. I eventually got really warm and my ear warmers came off, my gloves came off and I pushed my sleeves up – remember it was 19 degrees out! My best mile was Mile 2, I really got into a groove and I felt like I could run at that speed forever UNTIL I met the incline from hell. The last mile was a steady incline and my pace dropped dramatically. I felt like walking but I just kept chugging along. As soon as I saw the finish line I picked it up as much as I could. I really wanted the race to be over.

Garmin time: 30:44 (9:51m/m)

• Mile 1-10:11
• Mile 2- 9:25
• Mile 3-10:08
• .12 – 8:20

Clock Time: 31:08 (10:02 m/m)

Race #2 was the first race in the Winter Series put on by my Road Runners Club (HMRRC). This race was at the University and I was happy to find out that they provided child care! The best thing about these races is that they are free for members. I got to the race and almost immediately Suzy spots me! We chatted and went out to start the race. It was a cool 26 degrees but that was nothing compared to yesterday! I dressed lighter then yesterdays race because I knew I would warm up quickly. The gloves and ear warmers still came off about half way into the race. Thankfully Suzy stayed with me the whole race. I was worried that I was holding her back but she didn't seem to mind at all! I was definitely feeling the fact that I was running my 2nd race of the weekend and I was so glad to have someone there to talk to and get me through. I don't think I would have done as well if I was alone. THANK YOU SUZY! When the finish line was in sight I saw that it said 29:xx and I pointed it out and we took off, we both wanted to finish under 30! The worst part of the day was that my garmin didn't start working until a mile in. The splits below are from Suzy’s garmin.

• Mile 1: 9:27
• Mile 2: 9:41
• Mile 3: 9:50
• .05 mile: 0:18

Clock time:  29:24

Watch time:  29:18

The race was a 3 mile race but came up at 3.05. Not a 5k but I kind of want to use it as my 5K PR (but I wont lol). I am shocked that each mile was under 10 min/miles considering how crappy I felt.

Overall, my weekend was fabulous. I met a bunch of great people and ran 2 great races!