Race Report: North Shore Turkey Trot 10k

I got to meet Marcia!! I got to meet Marcia!! I think for this one I was more excited to meet Marcia than I was to run. She was one of the very first running bloggers I started reading last Spring - she's local and she ran the very first 5k I ever did, although I didn't realize it until I read her race report. Even though we ran a couple of the same races this season, we hadn't managed to connect until now.

The forecast was questionable - cold, drizzly, very damp. I left the house with one of everything, not really sure how I'd feel once I got out there. I found easy parking and got in touch with Marcia, and we spent our entire time pre-race in my car chatting. Neither of us was really sure what to wear - Marcia waited until just minutes before the start, finally deciding to check her jacket, hat and mittens. I opted to keep my jacket, since it was still drizzling.

We made it to the start, and hung for just a minute before we were off. I was WAY further up in the pack than I usually start, and spent the first few minutes watching waves of people run past me. Not that it bothered me - I am quite comfortable in my slowness, and it was neat to see just exactly how big the race was.

It was clear early on that I had made the WRONG choice in apparel. I was freakin' HOT. And since I'd pinned my race number to the front of my jacket, there was no easily removing it. So I suffered.

It was also clear early on that this was going to suck. For whatever reason, this run was tough for me. Maybe because I was still fighting this stupid cold, maybe because it as so humid, who knows. By the first mile marker I was wishing I'd done the 5k. And it never got any better.

But I was happy to be out there. The race was hilly and hard, but I was ready for that (I'd run a 5k that covered part of the course in the Spring), and with no time goals at all, I was just glad to be moving. I will admit to walking much more than I usually do (my normal MO is to take a 10 second walk break every half mile or so, but today it was more like every quarter mile) but until mile 5 I was holding a pace under 11 minute miles, so I was happy.

Mile 5 came and I was just wanting to be done. I felt defeated and tired. I was coughing and walking. Ugh. I was managing to keep up with the same pack of runners I'd been hanging with, but it was increasingly difficult to keep pace. I was really happy to see mile 6 and knew the finish line was close.

I crossed the finish line and headed down the chute. Got some water and some Gatorade and caught my breath. Then I realized that I forgot to look at the time when I crossed and my Nike+ was still recording. Oops! I always do that...

I finished in 1:10:02, which was funny since I'd told Marcia when we started that it'd probably take me an hour and ten. On my way back to my car, a woman stopped me and said, "Nice race! I was trying to catch you the whole time, but I never could." It reminded me of my first 5k when I'd said almost the exact same thing to another runner. I guess no matter how terrible you feel like you're doing, it's all relative. It was nice to hear that before I left - I was feeling really slow. She made me smile.

I got home to find that John had accomplished everything I set out for him. I had a nice shower and a lovely Thanksgiving, even if my Father-in-Law DID show up a full hour and 45 minutes before I was ready. Oh well - I wasn't even a little surprised. My parents showed up shortly after that, so I had a team of experts in my kitchen. Dinner was wonderful!

My Mom and I made our annual 4am trek out to make fun of the crazies, and it was nice to hang out with her. We got a good chunk of shopping done and we were home by 8:30am. We hung out for a while before they left for the airport to redo Thanksgiving at my sister's in Texas.

I hope everyone is enjoying their long weekend as much as I am!