Cartwheels & Windmills: Race Recap: Riverfest 4K

25 June 2013

Race Recap: Riverfest 4K

I ran a race this weekend!

I haven't run in a real race in over 2 years (when I did the Fiesta 5K), right before I got pregnant with Cora. Pregnancy and running do not mix with me, and neither does being within the first 6-8 months post-partum (or so I've found). I decided to go easy on myself and run a 4K first this summer. (Plus, it was only $5 to register. A steal!) It was definitely a small race, as I figured out pretty quickly. We ran all around the campus of a small college (IPFW) here in Fort Wayne, and it was part of a festival to celebrate our ~~mucky brown~~ awesome rivers.

After a couple of logistical mishaps at sign-in (my bib bag didn't have any twist ties for the shoe chip and only contained ONE safety pin for the bib), I was ready to run! Cora had fun playing with her great-grandmother, who came out to look after her while I did my thing. There were two other races that morning, and the start times were only staggered 15 minutes. This was a bit odd, since kids were still finishing their fun run which ended right where our race started. Also, about halfway into our run, we ran the opposite way through where the Mud Run was finishing, and I had to dodge a photographer and a few participants. Hopefully they can figure that out a bit better next year.

As for the race itself, I got off to a great start and blew ahead of a lot of people. Most of the race was just . . . me, and nobody else around. I passed the 1-mile mark and glanced at my watch: 8:06! Are you kidding?! When I run on my own, the fastest pace I've had was about 9 minutes, but it's usually closer to 9:30. I have noticed that the shorter the run is, the faster I am, though, so I believed it. I also train on some hills, and this course didn't really have any.

I sprinted the end (as I always do), and great-grandma didn't even see me! I had asked her to take a picture, but I looked back as a volunteer took the chip off my shoe and saw her looking very intently the other direction (at all the people finishing). Oh well! I had her take this picture of me afterward, though:

Just pretend the background is the photo below.

This was the actual finish line I ran through.

I also forgot to stop my watch right when I was done, so I had to wait two days for the official results to come out to know how I did! (I didn't stay around for the awards ceremony because Cora needed a nap and I needed a shower and Grandma needed to get out of the humidity--and the ceremony was over an hour after I finished.)

I finished my 4K (2.48mi) with a time of 21:14 (8:34/mi pace), and I came in 2nd in my age group!! And 20th overall. Yes, it was a small race, but I still beat over 140 people and 11 girls in my age group! Also, this is weird, but I had made a comment a week ago that I wanted to be 30 so I could do better at races, but actually I would have come in 4th in the 30-34 with my time. I guess everyone my age is too busy having babies/running big races like half marathons/did the Mud Run instead?

Here are all the final results, if you're curious: http://ipfwriverfest.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/4k-run-results.pdf