I was excited before this race for a few reasons. First of all it is only 2 miles and I thought "that sounds easy." Secondly, it was less than 2 miles from the house and that meant there would be no stories about running late or running out of gas. Finally I was excited because it would be another race for my beautiful little runner Molly.
The fact that this event was on the 4th of July added a celebratory feel to the proceedings. Many people were dressed in their patriotic gear and everyone was in good spirits. There were even a couple of young ladies who had painted one leg with blue stars and the other with red stripes.
The weather was typical for July in South Mississippi; hot & humid even at 8:00am.
Even though we had not preregistered, the registration process was quick and painless even though it was very crowded. I also got a new shirt to add to my growing collection, this one a "patriotic" tank top.
We socialized a bit and began warming up. It was great to see the Cross family as well as Greg, Gavin, & Donovan. It was also nice to meet Hunter Henley ( I am looking forward to your event next month in "The Cleave".
As we lined up to begin the race we had an invocation from a surviving member of The Wesson family as well as a very spirited Pledge of Allegiance, and a stirring rendition of the "Star Spangled Banner." We then got a few race instructions, the horn sounded and we were off.
Okay, I was wrong when I thought 2 miles would be easy. I got off to a great start and despite the hilly course and the humidity I was feeling great and making great time, unfortunately I forgot to pace myself. Honestly, I didn't forget to pace myself, I didn't think I needed to. This was my 6th race and my shortest one, I run 2 miles all the time with relative ease. I wasn't taking into account the effect of race day and that with some many other people running I would push myself harder than training.
I finished my first mile in a record time for me, I was at 7:43 and feeling pretty good, but at about the 1.5 point I begin to feel my pace slow and my body begin to resist. The hills on the way back suddenly seemed steeper than the first time by and I also started to notice people passing me. Never one to quit, I kept pushing through, but my second mile was nowhere near as good as my first.
I had sat a goal for myself to finish the race in under 17 minutes... I am happy to say I surpassed my goal, finishing "officially" in 16:26. I am not ashamed of that time at all, in fact I am quite pleased.
After I re-hydrated and got my bearings back it was time for Molly's 1/4 Mile race. She had not trained much and I think made the same mistake I did in thinking this would be too easy. I am very proud of her for running it and for running it hard. She did not get any medals or trophies this time but still had a great time.
We didn't stick around for awards this time as we knew we weren't going to receive any and we had plans for the holiday; but overall this event was fun and well put together my compliments to the Gulf Coast Running Club and Blossman Family YMCA for a great event.
There were some new records set in the race. The link below is a great write up from the local newspaper
http://www.sunherald.com/2011/07/04/3246540/gonzales-mcbride-race-to-individual.html
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