This is a small race locally we decided to do as a group with one of my tri clubs – the Prairie Dogs. I also found out later my other club, Suburban Multisport had several folks there, but I didn’t see any of them.
I got there early and tried to collect up all the Prairie Dogs – in the end there was a good 12 of us there which was awesome!
The course is on the Schaumburg golf course.
This would be my 4th run in 3 months so I had no real expectations except get out and have a good time with friends.
We stretch, warm up, and line up and we’re off! Immediately a massive bottleneck. The cart path is pretty skinny and there was a ton of people. So the first 1/4 mile was just absurd. More of a light jog than a run. Finally it started to stretch and I ventured out on the grass to go around.
I settled into an utterly uncomfortably fast pace. Legs were screaming, lungs were not too bad. Mile 1 went pretty reasonable.
Mile 2 I remembered this was a hilly course. Not sure why I thought it was going to be flat? Duh. Anyway… it was taking it’s toll. I had to start digging deep. I waved to friends ahead of me (many switchbacks so I could see them) and I got passed by a couple who didn’t navigate the early crowds so well….
Somewhere near Mile 2 I realized I couldn’t hold this pace. No way. BUT… it’s only a 5k. I decided that I needed to push myself, to see WHEN exactly the wheels would come off, if I were to really push.
So I pushed. I didn’t hold the pace. I picked it up. Not much, but the effort was MUCH more.
Damn that hurt. I got real serious and real quiet. I was chasing down a 10yr old boy near the end who’s dad was running backwards. Ok, that kind of hurt the ego. But I wanted to beat them. So I pushed. And pushed.
Finally near the end, the boy sprinted me out. I was ahead of him for a while but in the last 200yds he out kicked me.
Overall, 34min or so. Not a stellar day, no where near a PR, but I’m in no condition. But I learned something. The wheels DID NOT come off. My self-imposed limitations in how much I could suffer really didn’t hold true. This was a valuable lesson.
So I cheered in the Prairie Dogs who were still out there and then we went back into the club house for chilly and beer. Considering I had WAY too many beers the night before, I gave away my ticket and stuck to Chili. We sat around and chatted for about 30min before we left to begin our days.
I cannot imagine a better start to the morning! Very thankful that I can attack a 5k with full effort without any real preparation. I say it a lot, because I think it a lot – but I am very thankful I CAN do this.
Life is not a spectator sport. Live it.
This is a small race locally we decided to do as a group with one of my tri clubs – the Prairie Dogs. I also found out later my other club, Suburban Multisport had several folks there, but I didn’t see any of them.
I got there early and tried to collect up all the Prairie Dogs – in the end there was a good 12 of us there which was awesome!
The course is on the Schaumburg golf course.
This would be my 4th run in 3 months so I had no real expectations except get out and have a good time with friends.
We stretch, warm up, and line up and we’re off! Immediately a massive bottleneck. The cart path is pretty skinny and there was a ton of people. So the first 1/4 mile was just absurd. More of a light jog than a run. Finally it started to stretch and I ventured out on the grass to go around.
I settled into an utterly uncomfortably fast pace. Legs were screaming, lungs were not too bad. Mile 1 went pretty reasonable.
Mile 2 I remembered this was a hilly course. Not sure why I thought it was going to be flat? Duh. Anyway… it was taking it’s toll. I had to start digging deep. I waved to friends ahead of me (many switchbacks so I could see them) and I got passed by a couple who didn’t navigate the early crowds so well….
Somewhere near Mile 2 I realized I couldn’t hold this pace. No way. BUT… it’s only a 5k. I decided that I needed to push myself, to see WHEN exactly the wheels would come off, if I were to really push.
So I pushed. I didn’t hold the pace. I picked it up. Not much, but the effort was MUCH more.
Damn that hurt. I got real serious and real quiet. I was chasing down a 10yr old boy near the end who’s dad was running backwards. Ok, that kind of hurt the ego. But I wanted to beat them. So I pushed. And pushed.
Finally near the end, the boy sprinted me out. I was ahead of him for a while but in the last 200yds he out kicked me.
Overall, 34min or so. Not a stellar day, no where near a PR, but I’m in no condition. But I learned something. The wheels DID NOT come off. My self-imposed limitations in how much I could suffer really didn’t hold true. This was a valuable lesson.
So I cheered in the Prairie Dogs who were still out there and then we went back into the club house for chilly and beer. Considering I had WAY too many beers the night before, I gave away my ticket and stuck to Chili. We sat around and chatted for about 30min before we left to begin our days.
I cannot imagine a better start to the morning! Very thankful that I can attack a 5k with full effort without any real preparation. I say it a lot, because I think it a lot – but I am very thankful I CAN do this.
Life is not a spectator sport. Live it.