Run Like a Polar Bear {Race Recap}

I’ve ran 10 races in the last year- and I have the race numbers on my cubicle wall at work to prove it.

You’d think that eventually, I’d stop getting nervous.  I don’t think it ever stops!

Ever had that nightmare about getting to the starting line and then forgetting how to run?  Or am I really the only person who experiences stuff like this?

Friday, I wore my half marathon shirt to work.  As soon as I got to work, I found out that the leadership team was making pancakes for everyone downstairs, so my coworker Arwen and I went for pancakes (did I mention that I also need therapy for my addiction to free food, along with my race nervousness?).

Flipping pancakes, Marvin, the race organizer, who ran marathons in the past but now mostly runs our company, asked me tons of questions about the half.  Don’t worry- he’s allowed to; we even talked about running in my job interview.  In fact, I’ve gotten every job where I talked about running during the interview.  Maybe exercise is the key out of the recession, people!

No, my legs weren’t sore after the half (my feet were!), but I knew I’d be sore after the Polar Bear 5K because of the hills, hills, HILLS.  I don’t mean just any hills- I’m talking a hill that looks like it was transplanted from another geographical region.

So, after eating a nice meal of spaghetti, garlic bread, and an apple Friday night, I managed to get the BEST pre-race sleep EVER.  Seriously, if there’s ever a “plus side” to being on super crazy strong medication to kill that infection, it’s that I’ve been getting great sleep all week.

I don’t worry about not getting a good night’s rest before a race, because if you’ve been resting well the week of the race, you’ll be fine even if your sleep the night before isn’t that great.  Still, I could really get used to sleeping 8 hours the night before a race- or 8 hours *any* night, for that matter.

I got to the race like an hour early and hung out with Emily, Steven, Colea, Chad, Kent, and some other running friends.  You see the same people at every race, so it’s pretty fun to make friends and see them around so much.  It’s the best thing about races, because in a town like Florence, it’s not that easy to make friends outside of work unless you’re involved in church or some sort of activity.  I hung out with a lot of coworkers too- they’re bound to be around when your company is a race sponsor .  I’m also super proud of all my coworkers who ran or walked Saturday!

After a pre-race energy chew, water, and watching the shirtless runners take a couple pictures (Yeah, I live in South Carolina, but it still gets cold here- it was in the low 30s during this race!), we were off.

The first part of the course is gravel, and with so many people starting, it makes for a long first mile or so.  Even though you’re running through the woods, there are tons of students from the school along the course so there’s no chance you’ll get lost!  Only a few parts of the course are actually paved, and it’s definitely not flat and fast, but it’s really fun!  Most of the first two miles is downhill, so it’s not slow, until you get to the hill.

Like I said earlier, that hill is no ordinary hill.

This year, I’m proud to say that I *ran* up the hill!  Last year, the only part of the race I walked was the hill. There’s no shame in walking the hill- because you have about half a mile to go post-hill, and of course, if you only run one part of a race, you sprint across the finish.

Keeping your head up and eyes down is the trick for the hill. It’s the same hill whether you run or walk it, but by not looking directly up at it, you can mentally psych yourself out and push through- and it worked!

After the hill, it was smooth sailing to the finish.  Not that any part of this course is really smooth, but anyway.  I finished in 27:33, beating my finish time last year by about four minutes!

Post race, I ate 4 pieces of cornbread.  They had chili, but as a vegetarian, I sampled each variety of cornbread- and the cheesy one was definitely the best!  Guess that’s something I should learn how to make.  I bought some awesome cookies too, can’t turn down a bake sale when all the items were made by church ladies- best cooks *ever* .

I also hung out with Angela and Lauren, along with some other really nice people- like the lady who told me that if I kept running with them, I’d be really fast when I hit my 20s (her jaw dropped when I told her how old I really am!).

Angela was the overall winner for females, which was really awesome since she decided to do the race at the very last minute (bet she’s glad she showed up now, haha!).  I placed first in my age group and Lauren was right behind me.  The awards are super cool, because students at the Choices Charter School make them. The school also has a lot of really great artists, too.

So, the race was pretty awesome.  150 people ran, 65 people walked, and the Choices Charter School raised $11,000. Running, chili, and polar bears- definitely a great way to spend a Saturday morning, even if it is 30 degrees outside!

Advertisement