Sunday, May 9, 2010

My FIRST race report...and thank you John Stanton :)

"I did it MY way..."
Sinatra

It is my pleasure to present to you, my very first race report. Today, I completed a 10K, right near my home. Also, my son, his girlfriend, my brother and his three kids were running the 5K. This is a very small local race and for the 10K, there were a total of 108 runners.
 
A group picture (I'm in pink on the left)...and let the races begin!
Missing from the picture is my super sister-in-law, who is healing her ankle so she can run the half-marathon with us in three weeks. I thought of you today Ju and I'm sending healing vibes your way...love you!

Both the 5K and 10K were scheduled to start at 10:45am so no rushing in the morning, which was nice. As we were having breakfast, snowflakes were falling, the wind was howling and by the time we left, rain was upon us. BUT, the weather gods were on our side and when we got there, the rain slowed to a slight drizzle, then stopped completely and we even got glimpses of sun through clouds for a few seconds at a time (but the wind remained). I was at the start line with time to spare and since we started about 20 minutes late, that would be lots of time to spare. After jumping in place and doing what was necessary to stay warm, I was more than ready to go by the time they blew the horn.
And we're off...this is before pretty much everyone passed me :)

After I came around the loop for the first time, I ended up side by side with my son who was about to enter the finishing area for his 5K. He shouted out some encouragement to me, and I was able to encourage him to the finish, where I saw that his time was 24m46s...Yay him!! All through the race, my wonderful uber hubby took pictures and encouraged me, running from side to side (the race was a double loop) and catching my jacket and encouraging me some more...he was amazing. As usual, I started very slowly and many people passed me. There were probably about two people left behind me after the first kilometer. I admit this bothered me a little bit, but not enough to make me rush, I knew that if I wanted to have an enjoyable race, I had to run my own race.
 
After about 1K, there are very few people behind me, but I'm smiling.

Thanks to my awesome training plan (Stanton's Running Room plan), the inclines and small hills did not slow me down and that is where I ended up passing a few people. I believe I passed about 9 in all (but, who's counting) ;).
 
I'm the one smiling in front in blue (I took off my jacket).
Behind me are three people I passed after 8K...and one of them was a guy ;)
  
I felt great throughout the race and I enjoyed every minute, which is what I wanted. As I was nearing the last couple of hundred meters, my son, his girlfriend and uber hubby were all there yelling out the time and telling me that I could make it in under 61minutes if I hurried...my son ran with me and with their encouragment I sprinted the last few hundred meters and crossed the finish line in 60m44s...and I am extremely proud of myself!
 
 Yay!! I may look like I'm suffering, but I'm smiling and well, I just sprinted!
I'm feeling amazing :) 
   Bonus, I came in 2nd out of 3 women in my age group and got a silver medal :)
Isn't that a cool picture...uber hubby yelled out "Come on ladies, arms up and cheer" and we did! Then, as we were cheering, my son yelled out, "Happy Mother's Day!" and everyone cheered with us...it was such a wonderful moment.

The perfect first race!
Cheers!
  

43 comments:

Jamoosh said...

Woo hoo! Age Group Medal and all! Way to go!!!

Hi! I'm Erin said...

AMAZING job! Good for you running your own race. I need to take lessons from you!

Laura said...

Wow great race results! Well done for getting second in your age group that's brilliant :-) Totally inspiring - loved reading your recap!

Miglena said...

Bravo! under 61 min is AMAZING! and what an experience to run with your son :)... I loved how they ran with you at the end. I am so happy for you!

misszippy said...

Excellent! What a great accomplishment for you. And on mother's day no less. Congrats.

Claire said...

Wonderful!!!! Congratulations on your first medal!!! How cool is that?

Suzy said...

Congrats on a great race! Way to go on placing. Enjoy your first medal.

Jon Gilchrist said...

YOU ROCK!! Great job ANNNNNNNNND You got a podium finish...ROCKSTAR!!

Marlene said...

Congratulations!! What a great first race! You look so happy. Nice snag on 2nd place too!

MCM Mama said...

Congratulations! Great job and Happy Mother's Day!

Char said...

Great report. Well done on your first race. It looks soooo cold.

Pat said...

How awesome! I loved reading your report and seeing the fantastic pictures. I can't believe you chose a 10k for your first race. You are so inspiring. Congratulations!

runningfrom said...

wow - I'm sooo happy for you, my friend, and how beautiful that your family was with you in every way possible. You know I'm not usually one for feel-good stories but...damn that made me feel good!!! Happy Mothers Day indeed :) j'x

MomRunningFromCancer said...

I knew you were going to do awesome. I am really happy for you. And it was so special to have your family there with you to cheer you on and to get to enjoy your triumph.

ENJOY!

Julie said...

Oh Anne, I have the biggest smile on my face! You did so awesome....just like I knew you would:) Congrats on a fantastic race and 2nd place age group win!! You have come a long way and look at how all of your hard work has paid off! I loved your race report and wonderful pictures:) Happy Mother's day!

ajh said...

I didn't know there was a 5K and you chose the 10K. You are hard core. I usually read the blogs in order but I skipped right to yours as I was so anxious to see how your first race went!
You won an age group medal and got to stand on a podium!!!Woo Hoo! I have never done that. Yeah yeah yeah! I am so glad you had a good first race!!!

TMB @ RACING WITH BABES said...

Congrats! Sounds like an awesome first race! And to win some hardware ... doesn't get better than that!

Heather said...

LOVE the podium shot! Congrats on an awesome first race! And a congratulations to your whole family too. :)

obxbchgrl said...

Ain't no stinking Asthma gonna hold you back! Congratulations on your most excellent finish on your first race. And great recap!

Hope your Mother's day was full of all kinds of wonderful!

Run on.

Mel-2nd Chances said...

WOW! You did awesome, and congrats on your 2nd place finish!!! Bravo! :)

Claude said...

So proud of you sis. You are such an inspiration for all of us. Happy mothers day!
I love you. xx

Amy said...

Way to go!! That is a great time for your first 10K and even more important, everything went so well and you had fun! Good for you!!

Black Knight said...

How many good results!!! The first race report, a good final time, the age group medal and ... many smiles during the race! Brava.

chris mcpeake said...

Congrats on such a great first race and you placed on top of it all. Wicked race report and pictures (you look like you are having so much fun!)

Jennifer said...

Congrats Anne and you got some hardware!!! You look fantastic in your pictures! Way to go!

Robin said...

Oh my goodness, Anne... I'm crying happy tears as I'm reading! What a wonderful FIRST EVER race and I loved reading your recap. The pics are great... pls thank uber hubby for us. :) And I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the cheering photo at the end. Your son yelling Happy Mother's Day sealed it... bring on the Kleenex!

What a fantastic way to spend a Mother's Day...wow! I'm so happy for you and proud of all your hard work. You did it, lady! :)

Now, on to that half... woo hoo! Meet us in Chicago in Sept for the half on the 12th??

Extra big HUGS today from Orlando! (Snowflakes there, 90 degrees here. LOL) Thanks for your comment this morning, too...

robin/turtle runner

Johann said...

This is all so perfect! Well done Anne! This is a day to remember. Your time is awesome and 2nd in your age group as well! You were very wise to run your own race. Once again, congratulations!

Teamarcia said...

Wow CONGRATS! Really that is a great time! You look so happy and beautiful out there! Well done!

Claudia said...

Congrats Girl!! Amazing for you first 10k race, amazing time and you got to stand on the podium.

What a great Mothers Day

SeeGirlRun said...

How cool is that?! You got a medal!!! I'm so happy for you! I'll bet you feel like wonder woman. That is just awesome. Woot!!!! And your hub was so nice to get it all captured for posterity. You look so cute in the pink jacket. I love pink. Way to go!!!!

Laura

PIERRE JR said...

I DON'T THINK YOU COULD BE STOPPED!!!


ALWAYS JUDGE A WOMAN BYE HER ACTIONS NOT BY HER "BLOG"

Molly said...

wow, what a great race for you, I can't believe it was your first! Love that you had a group of people racing together, great photos! Congrats!

momof3 said...

YOU ARE AWESOME!!!!

Sherri said...

This was such a fun race report to read!
I have been so excited to hear about your first race!
I love that you smile and that your proud of yourself...that is such a great example! You should be proud...you ran a great race...but so often we continue to beat ourselves up...even when we do great! Or I should say I do! I am really working on enjoying every aspect of running...and I can't believe how many times I am finding myself smiling while running! That is what it is really about!

Thanks for your sweet comment...all of them! Your always an inspiration! =)

Beth said...

Wow! That has to be the best first race ever! You got to cheer up close for your son's finish, your husband and cheering section were there cheering you on the whole way, and you got a medal while standing on a podium. What a way to kick off your racing career!! Congratulations!

Meg said...

That is an amazing photo of the podium pose, kudos to your husband for his shout out! It sounds like you PR'd and placed...great job, Anne! I love your smiles in the pictures, you are thriving!

kilax said...

Yay! Great job! I love your first race report. I think it is so awesome that so much of your family participated, that you went your own pace and that the weather cooperated (hee hee). Congrats on the medal! :)

NY Wolve said...

Awesome! I have never won anything, so I am jealous. And 621 minutes would put you in middle of pack hear in NYC with a 5000+ field, so be proud of the time too.

Irene said...

Congratulations! That's soooooo cool that they had a podium to stand on.

Judi said...

Loved your race report. I love that your family participated in the 5K and was there to cheer you on. My family is what makes the race worth it! Great time too!

Janet said...

Great race report! It's wonderful that so much of your family participated and spectated! Congrats on an amazing first race! I hope you have many more in your future! PS - thanks for being a new follower on my blog :)

Steel Springs said...

Congratulations! I'm glad that you enjoyed your first race. Nice job with the AG award, too! That's so fun. It's awesome that your family was there with you.

Anne said...

Look at all these comments and congratulations. Allow me to add to the most-deserved pile.