Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure 10K, St. Petersburg, Florida: Oct. 6: race recap

Before Saturday, I ran one 10K. It was OK, but it was definitely not my favorite distance. So much so that I didn’t think I’d do another one.

Then, I had a friend doing a 10K. I thought about it. Then, there was a possibility I’d be out of town. So, I stopped thinking about it. Then, the possibility of being out of town turned into not a possibility. So, I signed up for the race.

I was still a little unsure about the distance, the course and the weather.

The pesky Pier

Heat ... and lightning?

I met my friend from running group, Lori, at her house to ride together to the race (in addition to two of her other friends).

We wanted to get there early to find parking. I read in the paper that they expected 10,000 people. Yikes!

But, parking was a breeze. Also, since the 10K was the first race (and started 45 minutes before the 5K), it wasn’t crazy crowded.

We had time for a photo, porta-potties (with no lines) and checking out a few booths before heading to the start line. 

Photo credit to random guy walking your dog early that morning

Yeah, the photo is blurry. But that's how I feel early in the
morning so I thought it was appropriate.

The race started right on time, and we headed to the start (with other members of the running group we found at the start). It wasn’t nearly as crowded as I thought it would be.

Luckily we hit the Pier in the first mile, so it wasn’t as pesky as it has been in past races. We ran through our first water stop. We kept running along the water, and all was wonderful … until we started running by hacking-coughing-snorting-sniffing-spitting man. Seriously, this guy was making every nasty bodily noise possible, and it was nonstop! Ugh. I think this was our fastest part of the race as we sped to get away from him.

A few miles into the race, I knew this was going to be a good race. It wasn’t as hot as it could be (still hot, mind you), and it was fun! Yay for running! It was great seeing other running group friends throughout the race. Yay for running friends!

We walked through each of our next water stops to make sure we were hydrated. But, that was it. No extended walking breaks …even when we went up a hill (a Florida hill, so probably nothing to anyone else).

I felt really great throughout the race. It was hot, but thanks to clouds, no scary sun. And, no scary lightning.

I started to feel tired at mile 5. Lori sped up like you’re supposed to do later in the race. I just couldn’t do it, but I kept running. As we hit mile 6, Lori turned around and came back and found me so we could finish together. I thought that was so sweet.

As we got close to the finish line, we did our final push. And Lori grabbed my hand as we crossed the finish line. Emotional moment, and I’m not emotional.

Our time was exactly the same: 1:16:38. 

Woo-hoo! We ran a 10K, and it was fun!

I ran a 6-minute faster 10K earlier this year, but it was not nearly as fun as this race. It was much, much cooler, though (and that probably had something to do with my faster time).

We had fun cheering other running group friends across the finish line. Then, we hit the booths, grabbed some freebies and cooled down before heading home. 

I just enjoyed everything about this race: water stops were great and well-stocked (necessary on a hot day); it was well-organized; and it was inspiring to see all the breast cancer survivors participating.  My only compliant: they listed me as 4 years older than I am and put me in a different age group. I quickly emailed, and that was quickly resolved. Whew.

When people ask me how the race went, my response is always “It was so fun” because it was.