The Turkey Trot took place in Fish Hawk on Thanksgiving morning. It was 40 degrees when I left my house and it took me 45 minutes to get to the middle of nowhere, where the run was being held. I registered for the run in plenty of time to receive the guaranteed t-shirt, but when I got to the registration table to pick up my package, they said they had run out of my size shirt. They said if I wrote my name and address down, they'd mail me a shirt. Since I would rather wait for a shirt that would fit than take a shirt just to take one, I wrote my name down. (I am still waiting for the organizer to get back to me, even though I have followed up twice at this point. No, a t-shirt is not a big deal. The fact that they told me they would do something and did not, is a big deal. Update: She got back to me and said the additional shirts have been printed and mine is in the mail. I'll let you know when I get it. Second Update: I got it.) My friend Carrie signed up with me (she is still waiting on her shirt, too) and we were going to run it together. Since I was going to be with another person, I thought it would be rude to bring my music, so I left my cell phone and ear buds in the car. (Big mistake!) This run took place in the street (the street was closed for the race) and went from the Publix parking lot to the last cul-de-sac and back. The run starts, and Carrie and I head off together. I did my best to keep up, but Carrie ended up running ahead of me after a few minutes. So, there I am, jogging my little heart out, with nothing to listen to but my labored breathing and negative thoughts. Definitely should have brought the phone. In addition to music, it also has my RunKeeper app, which tracks how far I'm running and how fast I'm doing it. I finish this 5k through a combination of walking and jogging. I finished in 43 minutes, 32 seconds. Not a bad time as far as I concerned, especially when you consider that I walked part of it.
The Jingle Run was a week and a half later. I also ran this with Carrie, and Cedric joined us, too. I learned my lesson this time, and although I planned on running with them, I brought my phone and ear buds. This run took place at Bell Creek Nature Preserve and the entire course was on a hiking trail. I've never really run on a hiking trail; I got pretty dirty, but I liked it. I started out running with Carrie and Cedric, but they pulled ahead. I maintained my pace for the first mile and a half, then walked for a quarter mile in the middle, then jogged the rest of it. RunKeeper said I jogged 3.03 miles in 42 minutes 45 seconds. Really curious if I would have been faster on a difference surface. Still super proud. (Fun story in a coming post about how I spent the rest of the day after the Jingle Run.)
The Reindeer Run was this past Saturday at SeaWorld. I ran this with Sandy and Andi. It was a super foggy morning and I was running about 5 minutes late. No big deal, right? Except I had no idea that 5,000 people were running!!! Talk about a stressful morning. People everywhere! Thankfully, Sandy was there early and figured out the system and made sure I had what I needed and was where I was supposed to be. (Everything, that is, except for a bathroom break before the run started. Lucky for me, I was super-dehydrated that morning. It's all part of the fun story I'll start after this post.) Running three people wide did not happen, so I fell a few steps behind Sandy and Andi. I learned from previous experience to carry my phone, so I started RunKeeper as soon as we had enough space in front of us to start running. I have RunKeeper programed to give me pacing updates every quarter mile. I want to make sure I don't run too fast, so I don't get tired too quickly. I had to keep yelling at Sandy and Andi that they were going too fast. Sandy and I had decided to run around a 13 minute mile pace, and they kept going faster than that. The Reindeer Run at SeaWorld was so packed! I'm sure it's going to be good practice for the DPHM. SeaWorld was really pretty to run through; they had their Christmas lights on. I hadn't been to SeaWorld in a really long time, but it was definitely fun to run through. Lots of people kept stopping to stare at the animals. I glanced at the dolphins and kept going. I didn't even stop to tie my shoes, even though 3 different people told me they were untied. I couldn't stop. I was in the middle of setting a personal record and jewelry was on the line! Remember how I was bribing myself to reach different exercise milestones with jewelry? Well, it really bothered me that I didn't earn my purple ring the previous week because I walked the middle quarter mile. I couldn't stop and still say I ran the whole thing. That would be cheating. According to RunKeeper, we finished 3.12 miles in 42 minutes 52 seconds. I was so proud! Personal record: Ran over 3 miles without stopping. That might be the longest I've ever run, ever.
So, three different runs, in three different places, with pretty much the same result: I finished! Next organized run is the Orlando Color Run. Don't worry, there will be pictures.
