Tufts 2011

I promise the next post will not be about running; this blog is getting too full of running photos and race stories, which are only interesting to a limited crowd. But I can't help myself...

...it was Tufts! THE Tufts 10K, which serves as the USATF National 10K Championship. It's one of the most competitive races I run every year, and it's good to get my booty solidly kicked every once in awhile.

I took a few days off from running last week because my calf was still really sore from the previous weekend's half-marathon. I pulled on a calf support sleeve and toed the starting line on Monday, hoping I wouldn't completely rip my calf in half (been there, done that, frosh year of college!). I didn't run spectacularly fast, but ran well enough to score for my team and I didn't injure myself in the process.

I went out quick, felt like junk around Mile 4, but still held it together for a 39:03. I was 53rd place (booty solidly kicked - check). Not a great race and nowhere near my best, but good considering the week I had.

After the race, I took the train home and took the fastest shower ever. We hopped in the car and headed for Crane Beach. We stopped at an apple farm and picked up cider donuts, then went to the beach. We met up with Scott's mission companion/BYU roommate, Nathan, and his family. The weather was perfect, the beach wasn't too crowded, and the kids were overjoyed to run free. Phoebe ran at least 10K on the beach: she chased horses and dogs, she found hermit crabs and snails and would carry them for a few hundred meters before chucking them into the ocean, and she stopped to play with just about every kid on the beach. We stayed until the sun went down, then stopped to eat on the way home. After that, the kids fell asleep in the car and we had to carry their sand-covered rag-doll bodies to their beds.

It feels good to be exhausted and happy all at once.

Tufts 10K Race Report

Happy Columbus Day! The best part about this holiday is being able to run an awesome road race midday on a Monday. A few ladies from church trained for the Tufts 10K; for many of them, this was their first road race. We met once a week for an evening run together, and some of them trained in pairs. They were all so excited; they wanted to wear the race T-shirt to the race (which made them very hard to find!). The photo above is of the group before the race, all smiling big. As you can see, the smiles are just as big if not bigger afterward. The only difference is that we're slouching a little more (and our group shrunk since it's impossible to find your friends among 8,000+ women wearing the same shirt).

Here's the official race report:

After meeting up with the ladies for a photo opp, I waited in line at the port-o-potties for a solid 25 minutes. While in line, I changed out of my tights and put on my racing flats. After that, I found my GBTC team and ditched my stuff in their pile. There were about 15 minutes until the start of the race at that point, and I hadn't warmed up yet. I did a 5-minute loop around the Boston Common and then headed for the starting line. Unfortunately, there is a fence between the start and the Common, with only one entrance to get through. 8,000 ladies were squishing into this one 10-foot gate and onto the road where the starting line was.

When I got to the road, the start was still about 150 meters away. And the announcer had just sent off the wheelchair race, so I knew I only had 2-3 minutes until the start. I looked up and saw the 10-minute-per-mile pace sign and knew I was in the wrong place, but there were about 4,500 people between me and where I wanted to be. So I started darting through the crowd, throwing elbows and ducking and turning until I got up to my team. Just as I got there, bang! the race began.

The first mile went quickly - in all meanings of the word. I felt great. Then I looked at my watch. 5:56. Ugh, too fast. I am going to die, I thought. Mile 2 was better - 6:20. Then I saw Scott, Phoebe, and Bruce on the side of the road. I managed to give Bruce a high-five. Mile 3 - 6:20 again. I rounded the BU Bridge, which is where I stood last year with a giant arrow sign directing runners with my prego belly. Laura was there this year with the sign and she yelled something like, "Better than last year!" Indeed.

I saw Scott and the kids again. They cheered, Bruce shook a cowbell, and once I'd passed he turned to Scott and said, "Now can I have my fruit snacks?" I chased down a girl during mile 4 - 6:15. On mile 5, I settled back into the 6:20 groove and she caught me again. Rats! I tried to catch her on mile 6, but even after a 6:13 I still didn't get her. I didn't die! Yea!

After a quick kick at the end, I came in at 38:49, third for my team and 51st overall (hey, this is a competitive race!). All in all, I had a good race. I pushed hard but didn't hit a wall.