Run #36 Fox Valley Family 10K bka Cruel and Unusual Punishment
Mileage: 6.2
Temp/Time Of Day: 50's / 8am
Time It Took: 1:10:30 (according to their posting after the race)
Calculated Pace: 11:22 min per mile / 5.27mph
Thoughts/Comments: I tagged this race "Cruel and Unusual Punishment b/c the 5K/10K race started in the same spot in this big, mega-church's parking lot. The 10K-ers were about .1 miles behind the 5K-ers. We ran along the so-called flat roads, that really were a tad bit more hilly than I'm used to. But basically the course of the 10K was just double the 5K. SO WE HAD TO RUN RIGHT ALONG SIDE THE 5K-ers, who then went to the left to finish among cheers, while we were sent back out to the hills! I wanted to quit soooooooooooooooooo bad, but I knew that I could do 6 miles, I knew that I'd feel guilty later, and I knew that I had to report back to you all here, so I just sucked it up and did it. I was a bit tired from getting the girls ready and leaving the house by 6:30 for the hour ride. My calf was still a bit sore...all the "excuses", but none made sense enough to be a big fat quitter.
So anyway, the second time around the course, I noticed that of the few 10K runners in the first place, there were these 3 chics in front of me and one behind me. I didn't see anyone else except way up ahead. I finally decided to grab water at the aid station the second time around, somewhere between mile 4 and mile 5. At that point, the chic behind me caught up to me. We talked for a few minutes, something I NEVER do while running. She's like, yeah, I'm a slow runner too, and we were comrades for the moment. She then went on ahead and was ahead of me for most of the race, probably by 20 or 30 feet.
However, as we made the final turn back into the church parking lot (still about 1/2 mile to go, I suppose), I noticed she was slowing down considerably (or I was speeding up)...anyway, so we were now running together again. Rumor has it there were some people walking way behind, but I can't verify, so as far as I know, we were the LAST TWO 10K RUNNERS! So we get to the 6-mile mark and I turned on the guns. Well, as much as I could turn on guns. So then I notice she's doing the same thing. So then I turned it up a notch again!!!!!! I SMOKED right by her and into the finish chutes right before her!!!! It was a glorious victory, even it was for second-to last place, HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!
Later when they were posting the results of those who'd finished, I couldn't find her pace anywhere on the list, I was like, I KNOW she finished behind me, and the only other woman on the list with a time near mine was like 8 seconds before me. I was kinda salty, but then someone said "check the men's results just in case..." and sure enough, there was "Karen" with a time of 1:10:31. Cool...so I guess they're timing wasn't faulty. All that being said, the time on my iPod stopwatch was about 40 seconds more, but whatever. I'll go with the time they gave me, since it's better. 
So afterwards, me and the girls, my best friend who also ran the 10K at a personal best, I might add, and my mom and grandma hung out for awhile. Later after we'd been home awhile, I noticed Jada going thru my bag. Anyone familiar with Bodyglide? It's used to prevent chafing while running. Lately I've noticed that some of my undergarments are not fitting properly b/c of my losing weight, so I decided to use this small sample I had of the stuff just in case. The sample came in a real small container that apparently looked like lip gloss, b/c Jada was slathering it all over her lips. All together now, 1-2-3 EEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!
And on that note, I'm outta here for now! Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there, and I'll check back in later.
-Lindy
p.s. OOPS, there's more. I got a free massage afterwards and it felt pretty decent. There were a few times I had my fist balled up and was ready to slug the lady (not so hard!), but it was good. Maybe I'll get a few more of those during the training. Also, they had a free blood pressure check, and mine was 116/61. Pretty good, eh? Alright, NOW I'm done!