Frosty 5k {January 28, 2017}

1/28/17

Frosty 5k//Peoria, IL

20:46 (*8 second PR!*)

2nd female, 1st AG
1st race of 2017 season!

First of all, a big THANKS to "Papa" Mitch for allowing me to re-join the Often Running Racing Team! For those of you who don’t know, I was on the team {for one of our local run shops} for my first time during the 2015 season and then…well, Gabey-baby came along and ushered in 2016/my year of not being on the team. 

In spite of not being “officially” on the racing team, I was still pretty active in our BloNo running community last year. After we ran a really slow St. Pat’s 5k together in March, Gabe was born on 4/22/16. He and I went to cheer on Daddy-Clint and the rest of the racing team at the Lake Run when he was just a few weeks old (I was “that mom” with my infant in a carrier in the rain as we cheered Clint in on his final strides). In June I started helping out with Heat Wave {one of my favorite parts of summer!} for my second summer in a row, this time leading the awesome Group 3 Ladies with Gabe in our trusty BOB stroller.

My first race "back" post-baby was Park2Park where I managed to finish in 40 minutes and a few miserable seconds to make my per mile average just milliseconds over 8:00. After that, I managed my second-fastest-ever Bix in late July and then a somewhat-decent 5k at Evergreen in August. In late August I joined friends Carol and Amber for a team 5k where we took the fastest chick team honors in our sweet pink Often Running/Saucony getups. In September Gabe and I “fun-ran” the We Care Twin Cities Half Marathon as Barnabas runners with our very own Holly-Rae Van Hoof (I clocked my longest stroller run that day at just over 15 miles!). I call it a “fun run”…but I still clocked a sub 2-hour half marathon while pushing a stroller so I guess that’s cool! In October I managed to get top female at the ISU homecoming 5k (clearly all of the REALLY fast college girls were at home sleeping ;)). November brought Canal Connection (where I PRed my 10k!) and the Turkey Trot, both yearly staples. Finally, I worked up the “courage” to ask Mitch for a spot back on the team a few weeks ago (thanks, Clint, for dragging me to the store and for wrangling Gabe while we chatted!) and here we are! I’ll do my best to prove girls can still run fast (faster?!) after having a baby!

So….that brings us to this past weekend and my FIRST race of 2017 and my FIRST race as a newly-re-instated Often Running Racing Team Member!  A few weeks ago my coach (this guy named Clint, you may have heard of him) informed me that I would be running the Frosty 5k in Peoria as a fitness test as I prepare for my 2017 A-Race (the full at the U of I on April 22). When I received a registration confirmation in my e-mail despite not actually registering myself for the race, I figured I better take him seriously (thanks, love ;)). I did have PRing on my brain when I started thinking about the race, but I didn’t know if that was realistic or just a pipe dream. I started getting greedy, if I am being honest, and also had a few fleeting thoughts of, “what about a sub-20 5k?!” Yeah, you stop that Rachel - not yet.

Anyway, soon after finding the registration confirmation in my e-mail, I found out that Coach Clint was requiring fellow coached athletes Holly-Rae and Tanya to do the Frosty 5k as well. Additionally, some other ORRT teammates Amber and Gary planned to run it. On the drive over I asked Clint if anyone else from the team was running, to which he replied, “if there’s anyone who would randomly show up, it would be Carol!”

Backing up a bit here again, Thursday prior to the race Gabe came down with pinkeye (gross and seemingly painful for the poor little guy). We kept him home from daycare (doctor’s orders, of course) on Friday and I stayed home with him. I was hoping to get a little shake-out run in on the treadmill that morning while he napped - well, that never happened. He never really napped other than sleeping on me for little chunks of time (poor guy was, understandably, pretty grumpy and uncomfortable). I didn’t get a run in until the afternoon. I ran a simple/easy 3.25 miles while he played in his "baby cage" with toys next to the 'mill. I felt “fine” and was optimistic about the race the next day - and just hoped and prayed that G would be doing well enough for us to leave him with friends in town like we had planned.

Saturday morning we woke up and started our pre-race preparations. I cautiously woke up our baby around 6:15am. He was definitely less than impressed to be awake at such an hour (our boy loves his sleep, similar to his mama), but his eye looked much better and his general disposition was good. So, I got him ready to go and set out for our friend Kris’s house around 6:40. I dropped him off, filled up the SUV with gas, and headed back home where Tanya, Gary, Clint, Holly-Rae and Amber were waiting for me. We piled into our vehicles and the caravan was off…Peoria bound!

We got to the riverfront a few minutes before 8:00 am which was perfect - packet pickup was at Running Central at 8:00. We were some of the first people to get in line…after a few minutes of waiting, who did we see but Carol Pratt herself. Of course! After grabbing our packets, we went off in search of a bathroom. Frosty tried to help us out but everything seemed to be all locked up down on the riverfront. Thankfully, someone unlocked a door where there was a public restroom available so we got our first (or second or third, as the cases were) bathroom stops of the day out of the way.

Afterward, we headed out on our warmups.  Coach Clint had prescribed 2 warmup miles for me and, while I didn’t really WANT to run that long of a warmup, I knew that I should definitely heed his advice. I did my warmup with Carol, Amber, and Holly-Rae and lamented the fact that I wasn’t wearing gloves - my thumbs felt as if they may freaking freeze right off! I had also placed my iPhone and the two large key fobs for our vehicle in my right jacket pocket…the jacket is loose-fitting, so for every step of my 2-mile warmup those items crashed against my right hipbone. I actually now STILL have a bruise there, three days later - cool.

After our warmup, we started stripping off our clothes/changing shoes/finding gloves/stashing keys, etc. Also - I really, really had to pee. At this point we were like 10 minutes til race start and I knew I didn’t have enough time to go back to the public bathroom. It was either (a) be late for the race start (not a real option, in my opinion), (b) hold it for the moment knowing I WOULD pee my pants at some point during the race (amiright, postpartum ladies!?), (c) straight up pee like a boss in the parking lot, OR (d) pee into a {large, reusable} cup inside my vehicle. So, what do YOU think I chose?!

After that was all taken care of, I headed over to the start. Holly-Rae reminded me that Coach Clint had instructed us to do some strides, so we ran a few (ok, two) quick sprints in the parking lot. Then, I “casually” wove my way up to the second row of runners and prepared my brain for the pain that was to come. After some chatter, the director sent us on our way with a loud GO! I sprinted off the line a bit too enthusiastically. I was mere steps behind Clint for far longer than I should’ve been (probably like 50 yards). Irritatingly, I soon learned that the tights I had chosen to wear (thanks to the cold!) were a little too large around my waist. They kept creeping down my backside, necessitating being hiked up as I tried to simultaneously keep my pace up. I was hoping I wasn’t giving anyone a shot of my backside as I kept pulling the darn things up. By the time my watch said I was a half mile in, I realized I had definitely gone out too strong - my watch read like 3:02 at the half mile mark (HAHA!!!!)….and then Gary passed me. Whoops!! Thankfully, once I started sweating a bit more my pants started sticking to me more so I didn’t have to constantly pull up on them. Hot.

Also of note, at some point during the first mile I was passed by a speedy girl in a thick pink long-sleeved fleece shirt. I was kind of puzzled by her choice of attire and wondered if I would catch her again at some point. I can’t personally imagine that running a hard 5k in a heavy fleece that would soon certainly get wet and cold with sweat would be very comfortable. But what do I know!? Obviously, as evidenced by my too-big tights, I don’t really know how to dress myself for a cold 5k most effectively either.

Naturally, my pace backed off at that point to closer to where it should’ve been (out of necessity). I will say, thanks to adrenaline or whatever the heck it was, I did feel really great that first mile. I did feel like I was pushing somewhat - but I didn’t feel nearly as “bad” as I thought I should have at that pace. That was absolutely encouraging! I think my mile PR is something like 6:17. Mile 1 ticked off in 6:23…looks like I am going to need to do another mile time trial here at some point! Something tells me I could really kick 6:17’s butt.

As I neared the turnaround somewhere around mile 1.65 or so, I saw that Clint was in second - WOOOT! It was fun getting to give him a shout and a smile as he rounded the turnaround.  I made the turnaround myself and headed toward a slight uphill to the right…nothing “severe,” but enough to make my burning legs slow a bit. Mile 2 clicked off in 6:42, total running time of just over 13 minutes. At this point, if I were able to keep running at a similar pace, it could’ve been within reason to finish in under 20 minutes. The thought danced between my ears for a few seconds before I let that one fly out to oblivion, “maybe someday, but not today,” I told myself. This of course begs the question of IF my mental game were a bit stronger, could I have pulled off a sub 20-minute race on Saturday? Well, probably not. But who knows! This much is true - I do need to gain some more confidence and I could also stand to obviously gain more strength and fitness.

Well, mile three kinda sucked. We were running right into the wind along the river at this point. I tried to keep my pace somewhere decent, but I was definitely fighting. Mile 3 wrapped up in 6:56. Pink fleece girl was in sight but I knew I wouldn’t be catching her. You GO girl!

Thanks for the snap, Tim! This was around mile 2.5 or so. I was definitely feeling the pain;
the smile and fist-pump are definitely mind-over-matter!

As I rounded the corner to turn left toward the finish line, I saw Mr. Wells cheering me on in. That always gives me a nice mental boost and I was able to pick up the pace a bit. The final 0.11 by my watch was in 0:44 seconds/6:27 pace. I was definitely gassed but was elated to see the clock at 20:45 as I crossed the line.

Fun to see the "new record" notification pop up on my watch after this race!

Total per my watch - 20:45/total per race clock - 20:46/average pace per mile of 6:41. I ran some pretty mean positive splits…sorry, Coach Clint. HA!!

My previous 5k PR was set in April of 2015 at the Easterseals Run, Walk and Roll 5k in East Peoria (20:54). It was great to figuratively and literally crush that PR for a few reasons (some of you know that my 9 1/2 year employment relationship with Easterseals ended this past week - an entirely different story for another time, over many drinks). Most significantly,  it felt empowering to run this speed at 9 months postpartum. Having a baby and “getting old” doesn’t mean you have to get slower…I’m determined to keep improving until I no longer can!  Also - maybe I need to invest in a speed-inducing fleece. Pink fleece girl got a time of like 20:02 (just imagine what she could’ve done without that fleece weighing her down! For the record - I am kidding. I'm fully aware that people have plenty of reasons for their clothing choices :)...all I'm saying is that it is not typical that the fastest people are also wearing the most clothes! Ha!). 

After we cheered in all of "our people," we went out on a cool down. I did a mile and called it good before heading into the post-race shindig/awards ceremony. I enjoyed a banana and some water (somehow resisting the temptation of the expired packages of "protein balls" on the tables ;)). Among the door prizes that were given out was a pair of sweet Maui Jim sunglasses - our very own Amber won them! Lucky ducky!!

Fun - Clint and I both got second in our respective genders (well, he got second overall!) and first in our age groups. After the medals were handed out, we headed out to One World for some brunch - one of our fav Peoria places. After a yummy brunch (GF breakfast pizza for me and a scramble for C), we grabbed coffee (a special seasonal ginger molasses latte for me!) from 3030 and then headed to pick up our sweet favorite boy. 

Gabe had a great day as well with our friends Kris and Mike and their family back in BloNo. We are so grateful he was in awesome hands and were so excited to be able to share a date-morning together doing one of our favorite things. While we certainly love bringing G to races and sharing those moments with him, it was a nice "break" to be able to come and go all morning with all of the race prep and activities without worrying about him!

Loving the wood floors to scoot and slide on at Kris's house!

G + K

Next up - St. Pat’s 5k in March, as well as the Starved Rock Marathon Relay. And - I’m now at just under 12 weeks till my A-race, the full at Champaign! 

THANKS, Saucony for the amazing gear - comfy and good-looking! I LOVE my new racing flats and the jerseys look so great. THANKS, once again, Mitch for letting me be a part of this cool club again - I hope I can represent the team well! THANKS, teammies, for the camaraderie and support! And, of course, THANKS to Coach Clint for the guidance, tough love, patience and real love. And...congrats to all of the other finishers, in particular Holly-Rae and Tanya who also scored some sweet shiny-new PRs!

Happy Running and Happy 2017!

~Rachel

Some of our group post-race!

His and Hers!

Easter Seals Run, Walk and Roll Race Recap/Accidental 5k PR!

On Saturday, April 18 I ran a 5k in Peoria, the second annual "Easter Seals Run, Walk and Roll."  I work part-time for and volunteer extensively for Easter Seals here in Bloomington-Normal.  Easter Seals provides pediatric therapy services for children with special needs.  I've been a part of the teams that has pushed to get more running events in place as fundraisers to support Easter Seals.  I was a little disappointed that this event was scheduled for the same day as the MCStrong 5k event here in town (supporting another great cause and also with a large field of runners), but choosing to go to Peoria to run at the Easter Seals event wasn't really a difficult decision.

Last week was a busy one (I know you can all relate to life interfering with training sometimes!).  After a 14.1 mile training run the Sunday prior to the race, I did NOTHING Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday.  I do mean nothing...no running, cross training, nothing.  We had a track meet Wednesday night so that was part of my "excuse" in addition to increasing work and class responsibilities due to the end of the school year looming closer.  Somehow it was all-of-a-sudden Thursday and my 3 mile warm-up to the shop for the group run was my first run in 4 days.  Whoops.  However, the ten total miles I did on Thursday night were confidence-boosting...7:34 average (just one second/mile off of my goal average pace for the Champaign half that was coming up the weekend after the Easter Seals event).  Friday night I was in class after work until late...I ate a late dinner, rolled my legs for a while and went to bed after discussing with Clint the fact that I should take it easy at the 5k the next morning.

Saturday morning was an early one...the alarm went off at 5am (sick...not my idea of a good time to wake up on a Saturday!).  After hitting snooze too many times, I rolled out of bed, ate a Larabar, and packed up to hit the road to Peoria.  I was in the car by 6:15 and arrived at the race site around 7 to register and to help set up.  I spent time with my friend Jen at a booth talking about Team Believe, a team of marathon runners who raises money for Easter Seals, and attempted to recruit more runners for our Chicago Marathon spots this fall.  Soon, I looked down at my watch...7:45. The race started at 8am and I still needed to visit the bathroom. Looks like a warmup wouldn't be happening.  Whoops.

After hitting the bathroom, I joined the other runners at the starting line...just two minutes before 8.  There were 6 or so kids lining the start and two guys who looked like they potentially knew what they were doing right behind them.  I joined the guys and settled in.  When they sent us off, I took off at what I thought was a moderate pace.  I had no real expectations for myself, other than to run around 7-7:30 minute miles to have more time at my goal half marathon pace for the following weekend.  

The course of this race is not awesome ;-). It is two loops (yes....two loops for a 5k!) through a shopping area (The Levee District) in East Peoria.  The course has two tight little turns that kinda slow you down as well.  After the first tight turn (maybe a quarter mile in), I made a right hand turn down a road following two guys that were maybe twenty yards in front of me (at this point they were the first runners). A few other guys and the group of kids followed me.  Some guy not far behind us screamed, "don't turn! Go straight! Go straight!" Thank goodness he did because turning right would've resulted in going quite a bit off course.  I never did figure out if the two guys I thought I was following were actually in the race...or if they quit...or got lost...or what, because I never saw them again.  They really weren't far enough ahead to not catch back up (so it seemed) if they really were able to hold the paces they were running.

My first mile ticked off in 6:35. Whoops.  It really didn't feel like I was moving as fast as that suggested (adrenaline?) and I reminded myself that I really didn't need to push hard because I wanted to make sure to get through the race and this coming week and arrive at my half in Champaign strong and ready to run hard.  I slowed a bit, but then as we ran through the finish area where the crowd was waiting to start our second loop I sped up a bit as people were cheering us on.  Mile two was 6:45. The loop includes a lovely hill toward the back half that is just drastic enough to be annoying.  I ran up the hill the final time with the lead guy not terribly far ahead of me and the second place guy directly in front of me (he and I traded spots off and on throughout the race).  It was sometime after mile two and prior to mile three that I realized I might actually PR my 5k time at this race (besting 21:09; my PR set in January at the Frosty 5k). Mile three was 6:55 (I'm really good at this "positive split" nonsense :-)).  For the final 0.1 I decided to try to push a bit to catch the number two guy (because why not at this point?!) and managed a 5:56 pace for that final bit according to my watch.  I crossed the finish in 20:54 (chip time)...a PR by 15 seconds (but I didn't catch that second guy...he got me by a second!). 

After I crossed, they snapped a picture of us top three runners (I was glad I wore my Often Running garb as opposed to just my Easter Seals gear for this picture! :-)) and I joined my friend Jen at the finish to cheer the other runners in.  At the same time as the 5k, there was also a 1-mile walk going on.  It was pretty inspiring to see individuals with a variety of disabilities crossing that 1-mile finish next to the 5k finish.  Watching a little girl with Down Syndrome place a medal around the neck of a 70-something man who had just walked a mile in a huge metal leg brace was about more than I could handle.  Talk about a reality check...what they accomplished that day was far more challenging than my race.

Later on, I checked the results with Clint to see what the total number of participants was...looks like I got third overall out of 192 runners and 1st female!  I spent some time in the pool Saturday afternoon post-race to help deal with the resulting tightness in my legs and was hopeful that I would still arrive at the start line in Champaign next Saturday ready to run my goal 1:40 for the half.  Stay tuned :-)...