Making Plans

I had planned on the Freedom 8K in Green Cove Springs being my last race for the spring time for this year. Sadly, that race got cancelled (looonggg recap in the works). So, I’ve been thinking that I need to keep running and I want to find another race to do before December.

I’ve been trying to find a few and the pickings are slim. I have a few things against me including:

1) Travel time–I’ve already had a few out of town races so I really don’t want to do an out of town race again for a while.
2) Costs–there are some fun races coming up in late summer and October but they are themed and PRICEY! $70 bucks for a 5K just because there are props?? ehhhh…
3) Timing–I’m actually really busy in the summer. Maybe too busy for a race?

So, I got on my active.com app and came up with a few races. They fit the bill of being near me and on weekends I’m free–plus they aren’t too expensive!

The Sunnyside Survivor 5K/10K us un October and is just your basic 3.1 miles. So far, I haven’t even found a course map but I’m familiar with the area so I’m not concerned.

The Cool Summer Mornings Series is actually a few different weekends. The Clermont course through residential streets and along the lake. Not a bad course and it’s a VERY popular series!

This race is in Orlando and offers “networking” opportunities with psychologists after the race. Wouldn’t we want to be evaluated on WHY we PAY to run crazy miles in the heat?! LOL I think someone needs to seriously evaluate that!

Another race I’m thinking of–the Garden Series. Really, I only picked this one because I have never ran in Kissimmee and I think it’d be a new opportunity and have new runners!

So there is the line up… just a few I’m thinking of. I really have no idea if I’ll even sign up for any of them but races keep me motivated and I really want to continue to be a better and faster runner. Not that I really know what that means. I just want to keep running and know that I’ve accomplished it.

I’m now an Iron Girl!

Yepp, I did it!

43 minutes later I had finished 3.1 miles mostly running, mostly wondering why the heck I signed on for this in the first place.  Oh and stopping to take a lot of pictures. 

I woke up that morning and got dressed and ready—only to realize that I only had two safety pins and needed 4!  I  mean two worked, but the bib kept flapping up and no one likes a flapping bib!

Why do I always wear black on race day?  It’s not a funeral!

I got to the start and the husband drove off to meet me at the finish line.  I headed right for Porta City and was REALLY disappointed by the lack of toilet paper and hand sanitizer.  It was however, a great time to get scared about the bridge some more!

The start of the race course wasn’t great.  The race was so crowded that you really didn’t get to run for quite a while into the race.  Really disappointing actually because you get so excited that you just want to run as fast as possible.

When I finally made it to the bridge I decided to stick with my plan—walk up so that I can run the rest of the race.  Good idea!  Everyone says “but it’s a gradual incline” well I would like to see them do that!  It was rough!!

There was a rainbow at the top! That was a nice surprise! And yes, I am that girl that takes pictures during the run at the top of the bridge pissing everyone else off…. what?

Coming down was MUCH easier but then it was so crowded again!

Here was something not so fun (that the amazingly talented Sneakers2Sandals got a picture of!) was the finish line.  There was a line people.  A LINE.  I know for a fact my face went from all happy to WHAT-THE-H-E-DOUBLE-HOCKEY-STICKS?!?!

My line wasn’t that bad but it was still horrible.  I had to stop for a little bit before I could cross the finish line.  Ree-donk-a-lous.

Anyways… so after the race I was stuck in the herd of women that made me feel like I was getting loaded on the truck for the butcher and I kept looking around wondering where the water was.  Oh! It was at the beginning of the finish line (what an awkward sentence).  Well, I was way past that and I wasn’t about to fight through a hundred women for a bottle of water.  I assumed there would be more when I picked up my food—right?  WRONG.

That’s right, IronGirl, I did not get any water after running a race.  I had to wander around with a dry throat and cursing your logistics!

Then I got excited (because I love all things pretty and shiny) when I saw this:

Super cute sandcastle—get me in that photo op line!  But no, I’m not in that picture.  Why? Because the lady in front of me SAT ON THE SANDCASTLE!! Then she said “oh, it’s made of sand?”

W-T-F-OVER?!  Lady, you’re on a beach and it’s a sandcastle—what did you think it would be made of?!

On that note, the husband and I decided to head for the car and pack it up on home.  Don’t worry, my hotel had plenty of water bottles.  Thankfully, since IronGirl herself didn’t.