Hometown Trotting

When I was sitting down to write up my race recap of Saturday’s Turkey Trot, looking back on the last few races I’ve run, I realized something interesting. In the last 49-ish days I’ve run four races (Chicago marathon, Beerfest 5k, Giralda Farms 10k, and this 5 miler), and somehow I’ve managed to PR each of them. I think I’m finally at a point in my running career where I’m comfortable racing more frequently, and my training is consistent. I’m really excited for what this could potentially mean for my marathon time… assuming I keep myself healthy!

But back to the race! On Saturday I ran my second 5 miler, the Westfield Turkey Trot. I ran this race back in 2010 in 39:40, right before I was sidelined with shin splits when I was just starting to get serious about running; and then I didn’t run last year since the race fell only a week after the Philly marathon and I was still hobbling. My goals for the race were simple – beat my 2010 time. To be more specific, I was hoping to keep a 7:40 average since I ran a 10k two weeks ago  on a challenging course with a  7:47 pace.

The weather all week was great – sunny and low 50’s is my kind of running weather. Of course when I woke up on Saturday, it was overcast and windy. While the forecast had predicted cooler temperatures and some wind, it left out one very important detail… snow flurries! As we lined up to start the race so did the flurries, but thankfully it never started to snow. After some detailed instructions from the race coordinators, we were off! Since I didn’t forget my watch this time, I was able to keep my pace much slower than what my body wanted to run. My favorite part about this race is that not only is it a pretty flat course, but I know every single street we run down, and we actually pass some of my friend’s parent’s houses on the way.

The entire first mile is run within the park, and once you’re in the neighborhood there are a lot of turns which help keep you distracted. By the time we hit the 3 mile mark, I was still pretty comfortable (unlike my last 10k), and decided it was time to steadily pick up the pace. Since I was keeping track of my pace pretty consistently, I knew that a PR was definite, and if I pushed it, I’d be able to come in with a low 38. As we turned into the park for our final lap (which I welcomed as a downhill, since most races seem to finish uphill), I gave it all I could and finished in 37:34! That works out to a 7:30 average, which I couldn’t be happier with. It was good enough for 7th in my age group (25-29), and as I looked at the results, I realized it would have been good enough for 7th in the 20-24, 30-34, and 35-39 age groups too. Talk about consistency!

After the race I enjoyed some Starbucks, a trip to Trader Joe’s, and a giant Chipotle burrito bowl for dinner. You didn’t think I would skip out on any of those being within blocks of each other in my hometown, did you?! The day ended with Christmas decorating, as it’s now socially acceptable to talk about the Holidays. As we were decorating, I pulled out an ornament I was given at my company’s Holiday party back in 2009 that boasted “most likely to run an Olympic marathon.”

I remember laughing when they gave it to me – I hadn’t even run my first half marathon yet! Little did I know a mere two years later I’d have three marathons under my belt, and be getting ready for my fourth. While the Olympic part is still pretty funny, it is a confidence boost to think about how far I’ve come in such a short period. Now if only I could get my marathon under 4 hours… hopefully 2013 can bring me that! I have my eye on quite a few races in early 2013, but haven’t committed to anything except for 2 half marathons (a week apart, oops) so far. I think it’s pretty safe to say I’ve ended the 2012 racing season on a high note!

Do you have any races left in 2012?
Any big racing plans for 2013?