05/15/2008 12:53
Race Report - M.O.M.'s Run 5K - Somerville, MA
Sunday – May 11th
I found out about this race from a flyer someone was passing out at my first race, the Cambridge CityRun back in March. Oh so long ago! I thought it looked great (easy) and figured why not.
It was a fairly small race – only about 240 participants – so no chip timing. I placed myself closer to the start line.
For some reason I thought I had suddenly become super speedy and took off WAY too fast. That didn’t last for long and I eventually settled into my normal penguin pace. It was a perfect day to run – about 55 degrees, sunny, with a nice breeze blowing. The course wasn’t too bad – had a couple of hills – but since it was a smaller race the streets weren’t closed. There were volunteers at intersections stopping traffic, but it was strange to have cars whizzing by me.
This was the first race where I actually had some people annoy me though! During the first mile there were 3 people running together – 2 girls and a guy. Well, the one girl didn’t look like she ran very much (or at all). They would all sprint past me and then start walking. I would pass them, they would sprint again past me and start walking again. This went on for the first mile or so, until there was a nice downhill where I picked up some speed and got away from them.
Toward the end of the race there was another girl – she had her jacket tied around her waist so I could hear her coming – doing the same thing. She would walk, I would run past her, she would sprint past me, start walking, I’d pass her and on and on. When I saw the finish line she was behind me and I could hear her trying to catch me, so somehow I pulled a little more energy together and kicked it up a notch.
After I crossed the finish line and I was going through the chute so the timekeeper could mark down my time this other woman I had passed in the last ¼ mile or so actually tried to pass me. One of the race volunteers had to ask her to get behind me so the results would be right. One of the first things I read about racing courtesy is don’t pass anyone in the chute! Anyway, this chick was also wearing tight gray shorts – and I have a bit of advice. If you have cellulite, please don’t wear skintight gray shorts – not flattering!
Luckily, Jerel snapped a great photo of all 3 of us approaching the finish line:
Anyway, I didn’t do better than my time at Heels and Hills even though I really did try! My official finish time was 37:53, which still keeps me at about a 12:13 mile.
Next race: Boston Run to Remember Half Marathon - May 25th
Will I actually survive it?