Second Chance

Last week, I wrote about not signing up for a race that I had wanted to run, because I was too intimidated by the crowd. I had a lot of excuses not to run, but the real reason was I was embarassed to run so slowly in front of people who were there to see the parade, which started after the race. Many of you wrote very supportive comments and I appreciate them.

It seems I had the date wrong! The race was actually today, not last Wednesday, and since I clearly was disappointed that I didn't participate when I thought I had missed it, I had to run it tonight. No excuses.

It's interesting how many people I'm getting to know in this running community as a result of the various clubs I've trained with. I recognized a lot of faces as I wended my way to the sign up area. I registered, got a race number and a free singlet, then went to the downtown fitness club that I belong to. The running club was going to assemble there and then do a warm-up run the one mile back to the starting area.

I saw my coach from the Grandma's marathon training and learned that she qualified for a free entry to the Twin Cities Marathon because she's so fast! I had no idea I was in the presence of an elite athlete. I knew she was fast, but I didn't know she was that fast.

I ran with some other back of the packers to the sign up area, then we all got separated. I drank some water and used the portalet, then walked four blocks to the starting line. I still had a half-hour to go, so I sat down and talked to the woman next to me. Then we began to line up. I headed to what I thought was the back, but it turned out I was pretty close to the starting line. Oops! I felt as if I had inadvertently danced into the mosh pit. It was too hard to navigate to the back, so I stayed there and tried to keep out of the way of people that wanted to pass. But there were plenty of slower runners ahead of me.

Fears never seem to materialize the way we think they will. I had pictured myself running alone on the parade route, far behind all the other runners, my fat legs shaking like Jello as I propelled myself forward. The reality was that I was enveloped by an ocean of runners, and you wouldn't be able to see me if you tried.

This race is called the Torchlight Run and it coincides with the Aquatennial, Minneapolis' summer festival. It runs through Downtown, along some of the same routes as other races I've run, such as the TC Marathon and the Arena 5K, only in a different direction. It seemed like a fun race to run, but for the past three years I've been in marathon training and I didn't want to miss a training run. Now I'm not in training and this will be my last summer here, so that's why I wanted to participate.

My goal is to someday run a 30 minute 5K. I knew I wasn't there yet, but I wanted to see how close I could get. I ran the entire time and when I got too winded I would slow my pace. This wasn't chip timed, but I had my Garmin so I just pressed start as I crossed the starting line. The weather was warm, but not oppressive, and I carried a sport drink. At the 2-mile water stop, I took a cup of water and poured it on me. That felt good.

We ran north on Hennepin Ave., then veered left to run through North Loop, a new residential neighborhood of former warehouses. From there we ran along the river, past the new Guthrie Theatre and then headed towards the Metrodome, which is where the finish and post-race party would be. The "Dome" is where the Twins play baseball and the Vikings play football, but neither team likes the facility anymore. It's also where the Twin Cities Marathon starts.

It wasn't a direct line to the Dome, so I didn't know where the finish was. I didn't want to sprint too soon. Then I could hear the crowds and knew I was close. Just as I was ready to rock, my shoelace came undone. Oh, man! I didn't want to affect my time by stopping to tie it, so I picked up the pace while trying to avoid stepping on my shoelace. Note to self: doubleknot shoelaces before racing. I made it across the finish line in 34:39. Not great, but still an improvement. I'm not sure what my best 5K time is.

Here are the splits:
Mile 1 - 10:43
Mile 2 - 11:03
Mile 3 - 11:00
Mile .13- 1:51

Maybe next time I can do 33 minutes.

Some of you have asked if there's a triathlon in my future. NFW. As I told AmyBee, there's no way I'm running in a bathing suit! But I rode my bike over to the race and then rode it home afterwards. Maybe someday I'll try a bike/run.

Speaking of bikes, while riding home I stopped and watched the parade for a little while. There were clowns, marching bands, and the usual floats with "princesses." Then a bunch of cyclists rode by; they had just participated in the Aids ride. I clapped long and hard for them.