Racing to the finish (that’s me in the pink!)
Nov 3:
Weather: Cold 40 degrees cloudy and a bit rainy
Goal: To beat my Falmouth Road Race time
Result: 1:10:23
Fans: Mike
I was excited about this race. My friend Kara had told me about it back in September. “It is a low key, no frills run along the same course as the Falmouth Road Race,” she explained. I sent my registration right in with myself address stamped envelope and waited for the big day. It seemed to take forever to arrive. The race started at 1:30 (“A day killer” is how Kara described it.) Mike was nice enough to drive me down and wait at the start line so I could stay in the warm car. It was cold and rainy when we arrived and I was in no hurry to stand and wait. When it was about 10 minutes before race time Kara, who was sitting in her mom’s car behind us, and I found our spot toward the start line. Kara wanted to be near the start; her goal was ambitious and I was only too happy to oblige since I also wanted a good time. We were busy arranging ourselves and our warm clothes when the group started to move and we realized the race had begun! There was no big gun shot or horn blow someone said go and suddenly the group went!
I wasn’t quite prepared but I composed myself quickly and took off like a shot. I ran hard but I still had lots of people passing me. Those people motivated me to keep up my pace but soon my heart started to pound and I felt lots of tension in my chest. “Breathe” I kept saying to myself. I pushed on. We finally got to the one mile marker and I glanced at my watch; 9 minutes, no wonder I felt winded. I hadn’t been running that fast in the last few months. I was pushing myself.
I slowed my pace a bit so I would make it through the next six miles. It took me a while to find my pace but when I did I settled in and tried to enjoy the scenery. It is a beautiful course. Since this is the same course as the Falmouth Road Race I thought I was familiar with most of the course. What surprised me was how hilly the first three miles were. I realized that not only was I pushing my pace but I was runny a very hilly course!
Fortunately the weather cooperated and while it was cold and rainy at the start of the race the race stopped and the temperature was such that after a couple miles of running (and the proper clothing) it was easy to warm up. I even ditched my gloves and was tempted to take off my hat. There were a few water stops but other than that there were few if any fans even at the finishline. When they say no frills they weren’t lying!
When I hit the last hill I felt great and was excited to be near the end. I pushed to the top not letting myself slow and cruised over the hill and down toward the finish. I hit the finish line and met my goal shaving a good 7 minutes off my Falmouth Road Race time!
Ugh moment: Having to talk myself through a few moments of feeling winded. It is scary to suddenly feel like you can’t catch your breath. The temptation to stop is high but I found that those were the moments where talking positively to myself worked best. I took body checks; reminded myself I could breath and not to panic. I know that in the future I will have to check my pace and make sure I am not going out to fast in my enthusiasm.