I originally signed up for this race, because I wanted to
work on my speed at shorter distances after the Aramco Houston ½ Marathon and I
figured this would be a good race to check on my progress. Unfortunately, my hip bothered me even more
after the ½ marathon and I didn’t really get in the quality training I had
hoped for. I did get in about 5 weeks of
decent, weekly tempo-runs. But, I didn’t
get to push my pace as much as I would have liked. Because of this, I went into this 5K knowing
that I might be able to beat my virtual 5K time of 29:59 (a 9:39 pace), but not
really sure by how much…
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| The start! |
The weather for race day was looking a little iffy
throughout the week…this is something I’ve learned to not worry about until
race day. This is Houston…if the
forecast looks one way on Monday, it is sure to change drastically by
Friday. At least 10 times. First, it was going to be a gorgeous morning,
then a chance of rain, then a larger chance of rain and then no rain.
The actual race day weather?
Cloudy, cool and extremely windy. Not too bad, but with the course going over a
bridge with two inclines, the wind could be interesting! And because it’s an out and back course, you
get to do those inclines twice. The
inclines aren’t super steep or anything, but they are just a bit of a long,
gradual climb.
I arrived early, so that I could warm up a bit before the
race and meet up with my running peep, June.
I found parking quickly, probably because I didn’t go to the recommended
parking lot…I’m familiar with the area and parked at the first lot I came to,
which I knew would be close to both the start and finish. I heard that there was quite a traffic jam getting
into the recommended lot, so I was glad I parked where I did! Once I was warmed up, I ran into a couple of
friends and we headed to the start where I ran into another running/tri peep
and finally, June. Before we knew it,
the anthem was being sung and the race was starting.
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| Me and June before the race |
***My PSA for the day…if you are a new runner (we’ve all been
there) and you’re not sure where to stand at the start, stand in the back. Unless you’re super speedy, it’s best to
start there. I was somewhere in the
middle of the pack before the race and had to weave around people who started
out running, but slowed to a walk within about 1 minute of starting the
race. I’ve also been a run/walker…if
you’re a run/walker, that’s cool…just please move to the right side of the road
when it’s time for you to walk. It’s
common courtesy. If you’re planning to
walk the entire course, that’s cool, too.
But, for the love of God, please, please, please start at the very back!***
This course is definitely not one of my favorites. The Elysian bridge is known for its ups and
downs. It used to be part of the Houston
Marathon and ½ Marathon course, as well as the now defunct Race for the
Pennant. Unless you’re a runner who loves
hills, you probably hate the Elysian bridge.
I hate it. But, it’s a challenge
and most runners do like a good challenge, right? Besides, the downhills are fun!
As expected, the wind was brutal on the way out on the
highest points of the bridge. This is
where I just dug in, leaned forward and tried to suck it up. Honestly, while it sucked, the time seemed to
go pretty fast. Before I knew it, we
were at the bottom of the 2nd incline and making a u-turn. Back up the bridge we went…
On the way back, the wind was at our backs. This was so much better! I looked at my watch on one of the downhills
and I was at a sub-8 minute pace. For
some of you reading this, that’s perfectly normal. For me, that’s pretty dang fast! It helped that I was 1) going downhill and 2)
the wind was at my back! My goal had
been to finish in 29 minutes or less. I
finished in 28:45, with a 9:14 pace.
That’s a PR for me, hilly/windy course and all!
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| The final time |
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| The awesome bling! |
The post-race festivities were great! Since the race also offers a 10K option,
those of us completing the 5K found that the post-race party wasn’t crowded at
all. There were bagels and peanut butter, fruit, water and sodas. And, Minute Maid park was open! Runners were allowed to walk around the
concourse area and even walk down into the seating area and take pictures near
the dugout.
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| Minute Maid Park...the field up close! |
I feel that Run Houston! Does a great job of coordinating
these events. I am also scheduled to run
the remainder of their 5K/10K series, which I am really looking forward to! And, I will be participating in Finish Strong
Racing’s spring running program, so I am hoping for more 5K and 10K PRs!
