2007 Astros Race for the Pennant

At first I wasn't sure how the day would turn out. We got home late last night from the graduation party and I was dumb enough to drink 2 margarita's! (By the way, anything after 10 pm is late for us.) Because we got in late, I had one very grumpy kiddo this morning. So grumpy that I debated about whether or not I should bring her. Luckily, once she woke up a little, she was ready to go. And, I had the nagging foot pain issue, so I wasn't sure how that was going to affect my running. I didn't have many expectations for today, I really just wanted to maintain a 10 minute pace.

The weather was awesome compared to last year! Very humid, but only 74 degrees and little breezy. Very nice for May in Houston! Before the race, we ran into Junction Jack and the kiddo wasn't sure what to think about him. At first, she wanted me to pick her up, but eventually she shook his hand and gave him a high five. We found my sister-in-law and nephews, then Rebecca. So many familiar faces...on the way to the bathrooms, I ran into June and Margo. On the way back from the bathrooms, I ran into a guy I went to high school with...small world! This was his 1st ever 5k, so congrats to him! While waiting to start, I ran into fellow blogger Brenda.

We sang the Anthem and were off. My nephew had spotted a couple of guys from his school, so that was his incentive to take off. I started a little fast,as usual...I checked the Garmin at the 1/2 mile marker and it said 8:56! I knew that was really fast for me, so I slowed it down. When we ran by the stadium again, I saw the kiddo with my sister-in-law. I ran over to give her (the kiddo, not the sister-in-law) a quick kiss. Somehow, I was still going too fast. At mile 1, I skipped the water station and checked the Garmin again - 9:13. By then, I was feeling the foot, but it wasn't too bad.

At mile 2, I thought I hit the lap button again, but apparently missed it. This time, I did stop for water and I did something I swore I wouldn't do ever again during a 5k...I walked! I walked up part of the "hill", drank my water and started running again. I made it to the turnaround and a short while later, I pooped out in almost the exact same spot as last year (somewhere after crossing Dowling). And, I did it again...I walked. It wasn't more than about 30 seconds, but still. I may have walked longer, but a woman was running past and said "C'mon girl, we're almost there". That was all I needed. I started running again and we chatted for a minute about running. She was just getting started with running and asked me if I had run a marathon. Then, we talked for a second or two about getting into a training program. Before I knew it, we were at mile 3 - the 2nd & 3rd miles timed at 18:51. Only one more turn before heading into the stadium to the finish.

30:00

on.the.dot.

Grrr...part of me is proud that I beat my Easter Bun Run time by 15 seconds(which was in near perfect 50 degree conditions with no hills and I beat last year's time in the same race by more than 3 minutes. This is my best 5k time in 5 friggin' years. BUT, part of me is kicking myself for those damn walk breaks. I missed a PR by 10 seconds! Had I dug a bit deeper and not been a pansy, I could have PRed!

Oh well, shoulda coulda woulda...can't change the past. All I can do is remember this at the next 5k and do better. Overall, I am happy that my times are improving, despite my inconsistent training during the school semester...bottom line - I ran better than expected and I had a great time!

The best part of the morning came next! No, I'm not talking about the post-race party, although that was awesome as usual. I'm talking about the kids K! My younger nephew and the kiddo were psyched about running it. We grabbed some grub and headed over to the start. The kiddo was dancing around to the music and having a good time. We ran into Coach Jon and his daughter and hung out with the other kids. However, as more and more kids got there, I think the kiddo got a bit overwhelmed because she wanted me to hold her. The race started and she ran a little while, then just stopped and started crying. Poor thing! She wanted me to carry her, so I did and assured her that everything was A-okay. After awhile she wanted to run again. We pretty much did the run awhile, carry me awhile thing the entire way. Whew, 1K felt more like another 5k with me carrying her part of way! By the end she was doing great! She was so excited to run across the finish line and get her medal! And, she didn't hesitate at all this time when Junction Jack gave her a high five. :-)