Apple Valley 5k

Having run the Blossom to Bottle 5k at Johnson’s Orchard a couple years ago, I have wanted to run the Apple Valley 5k race that is put on by another Bedford Orchard for some time now. The Apple Valley 5k race takes place at Gross’Orchard just below the Peaks of Otter in Bedford, VA. You could not ask for a more beautiful setting for a race. With the mountain views and the fall colors all around, the location is perfect for a fall 5k.

Finding out that my Dad had already registered for the race gave me the final incentive to sign up. I have only run one 5k race this year and that was at the D-Day memorial in May. So it had been sometime since I had tried to run a shorter run at a much faster pace. My regular runs these days range in pace from 8 min/mile to 9 and ½ min/mile. Knowing that I wanted to run a mid to lower 7 minute/mile pace, I was going to have to run much faster, for much longer than I have run in months.

Running faster is usually a recipe for injury for me, but I had pushed myself some during my normal weekly runs. I will pick out a mile in the middle of my regularly paced runs and I would pick up my pace and run in the 7 minute/mile range. I knew my legs to turn over at a quicker rate, but I knew it was going to be a challenge to keep my energy up to keep up that pace for over 3 miles.

I arrived to Gross’ Orchard about 30 minutes before the race starting time. This gave me plenty of time to check out a section of the course and warm up. Since the race course was a two lap format, I knew I could possibly complete an entire lap as my warm up. But after making it about a half mile around the course, I decided to retrace my route and make one last pit stop at the porta-johns.

After my much needed break, I spotted my parents. After talking to them for a little while, Dad and I made our way to the starting line. It was located about ¼ of a mile from the finish line, in the middle of the apple trees. The weather forecast had called for the temperature to be in the low 40’s with precipitation. We had lucked out though because the sun decided to pop out and the rain decided to stay away. So at the start of the race, it felt much warmer than 40 degrees.

Once everyone had gathered at the starting line, the shotgun was fired and we were off running. Like all the other races I have run in the past, I tried to settle in with the group of runners running my desired pace. This process too several minutes and I almost lost an eye to an apple tree branch. But I eventually found a nice spot to pace myself for the first section of the race. By this time we were just crossing the finishing area with all of the spectators. A quick smile for my Mom, who was taking pictures and we were back on the gravel road heading back into the rows of apple trees.

About a half mile into the course, we came to the only major hill of the route. The main issue I usually have with cross country style courses is the unsteady footing. If running off-road, I would much rather be on a dirt trail where I can determine which way my foot will bend when it strikes the ground. When I am running in a grass field, it seems like every time my foot lands my ankles are pitched at a different angle. It may be my age catching up to me or it may be all of those past basketball, football, and soccer ankle injuries catching up with me. Either way, the mounds of grass are always my enemy!

I made it over the worst hill of the course, back down the decline, and over the first set of hay bales. After a couple snake like turns through the orchard’s rows of trees, we were making our way to the side of the property that bordered the road. I had finished the first mile of the course in 7 minutes and 19 seconds. I quickly found out that that pace was a little too fast.

Over the next mile, we passed back through the finishing area again to begin lap number two. I also found out that as much as I hated running in the tall grass, I despised running in the loose gravel road even more. Luckily I was still able to think enough to run in the grass strip that ran down the middle of the two gravel car tire paths of the road. It was much firmer and my legs no longer got that “running in sand” feeling. As we made it up the bad hill again, my legs started disagreeing with the rest of my body.

Breathing-wise I was fine, but my legs no longer wanted to keep turning over at the same rate as my first mile. They quickly started feeling like they were turning to stone. I knew need to just concentrate on being loose and letting my body glide through this tough stage of the race. I finished the second mile in 7 minutes and 58 seconds. My pace had fallen off quite a bit from my first mile. I knew I needed to dig deep to finish the race strong.

I tried to zone out and think of other things during the last mile of the race. As we made it back to the front side of the property and back near the main road, I knew there was less than a half of a mile to go. When I get to sections of runs, I like to think of the distance in terms of laps around a track. Two laps around a track always sounded better than a ½ of a mile. Before I knew it, there was only a quarter of a mile left or in my terms, 1 lap around the track! I just continued to keep my feet turning over at the quickest rate possible. I finished my 3 mile in 7 minutes and 31 seconds.

With only 0.1 miles left, I was able to make it through the finish line with a time of 23:34.94, according to my watch. I was very pleased with my time. It was faster than my 5k in May, but well under my PR, which I set on a very flat course a couple years ago.

After grabbing some water and banana, I went to cheer on my Dad as he came through the finish line. This was the first time he had run off the pavement and it was a very challenging course. I was so proud of him has he came into sight. He was looking strong and finished with a very respectful time. It is always great to see him running and I hope that I will be doing the same thing when I am his age. I hope to be taking part in races with my sons!

Dad had done so well that he placed third in his age group and won a piece of pottery from Emerson Creek Pottery. I came to find out later that my time had not registered correctly when I crossed the finish line and my recorded time was almost 7 minutes slower than my watch’s time. They handed out little wooden sticks at the finish line with your finishing pace written on it. My stick said 14^th but according to the results, I was in 42^nd place with a time of 30:43.5.

I am not sure what happened with the timing but none the less, it was a great race day! The weather ended up being half way pleasant and the fall scenery was absolutely beautiful! I got to run another race with my father and we were both finish injury free. I couldn’t have asked for a better November race!

We Honor Veterans 5k

Back in May, I was able to take part in a 5k race that took place at an awesome venue. The “We Honor Veterans 5k” is located at The National D-Day Memorial in Bedford, Virginia. If you are not familiar with D-Day Memorial or why it is located in Bedford, you can get more information from the memorial’s website. 19 men from Bedford were killed in Normandy on D-Day and one of those men was my great uncle Ray Stevens.

I never had the opportunity to meet Ray. But if was anything like his twin brother Roy, it would have been a blessing to know him. Roy Stevens was like another grandfather to me. Roy always lived next door to my grandparents and I have many fond memories of playing on his farm. I will never forget those post Sunday lunch tractor and truck rides on the farm to count cows. I have learned so much about what it means to be a family man from the Stevens men in my life. Harold, Roy, David, and even Brad Stevens have taught me so much about life, through the years. It is hard for me to believe that knowing Ray would have been any different.

Because of my personal connections to Bedford and the D-Day Memorial, I was very excited to be taking part in a race there. I had been looking forward to this race for months, but I found out that one of Eli’s t-ball games had been scheduled for the same morning. Just like many other races this year, it looked like I was going to have to miss the race, in order to not miss an important family event. During the week leading up to the Saturday race, I began to think about the timing of the race and the game. The game was in Montvale at 9am and the race was starting at 8am. It was doable!

I knew I was going to have to leave immediately after finishing the race, so that I would have enough time to make the drive back to Montvale. Since the start and finish of the race was at the D-Day Memorial, I knew I would not be able to park at the memorial itself. The only road leading up to the memorial parking lot was going to be closed until at least 9am. I was going to have to find a place to park where I could make a quick exit.

Since I had not preregistered for the race, I decided to park at the memorial and register before stashing my car somewhere. After registering and using the restroom, I decided to park my car at the Bedford Visitors Center, which is located about ¾ of a mile from the memorial. I would use this opportunity to warm up a little. So I made my way up the hill to the starting line. While doing so, I had to climb the worst hill in the 5k course. For anyone who hasn’t seen the memorial, it is situated on top of one of the highest hills in the town. So naturally, the trek to the top has a little incline. This warm-up session did allow me to judge how difficult the hill was going to be during the race. I would be running back up this same hill during the 3^rd mile of the 5k. I was going to be a lot harder at that point!

Once I made it to the start/finish line, I realized that I didn’t have the timing chip that was supposed to be tied into my shoe laces. I just assumed that since there was no chip on my race bib, that the race would just be manually timed. At that point, I just figured that I would be running the race with no official time. It didn’t bother me because I was more excited about just running the race at the memorial. Then some of the race organizers came to the starting line and asked if there were any runners that didn’t have timing chips. I was not alone in the chip-less runners group. It was nice to know I was going to have an official time, but this development pushed the starting time back and therefor threw off my schedule of making it to the game.

When the race was finally started, we were already about 15 minutes behind. I knew I could probably finish the race in at least 25 minutes. So that would still give me 20 minutes to get the game. So I just concentrated on running at a comfortable pace while descending the hill. I have a tendency to start races at a much to fast pace, especially when the first section is downhill. In my mind, I had broken the race up into three sections; downhill, flat, uphill. So I had planned on doing three things during these sections; comfortable pace, maintain pace, attack hill!

The first section wasn’t all downhill, like I had expected. We started just below the memorial and we had to run uphill to the memorial and make a loop around the circle drive that surrounds the memorial grounds. Then it was down the hill to the visitor’s center. This was the downhill section that I to keep myself under control and not let my pace get too quick. I made myself go slower that I could have run this section, in order to save some energy for the climb back up.

Once I was to the race point where the terrain leveled out, I had to ensure that I didn’t lose momentum. I needed to carry my pace that I was running downhill through this second race section. I pushed myself to be consistent through this part of the course that ran by the visitor’s center and to the cul-de-sac at the end of the Bedford Elementary School’s road. Once we looped around the cul-de-sac, I knew I was half way there. My strategy was paying off. Because I made myself keep my comfortable pace through the downhill section, my legs still felt strong at the halfway point.

The trek back to the base of the hill went by quickly. Before I knew it, I was ready to finish the third leg of my race strategy; ATTACK! I gave that hill all I had left. I started a pretty decent pace and went my thighs started to feel the effects of the incline, I stayed strong and tried to keep my foot speed consistent.

A few months ago I started developing pains in my side while running. After doing to some reading on how to prevent side cramps, I found a technique that seems to work well for me. Since my side cramps always occur on my right side, the article I read recommended timing your exhales while the opposite foot impacts the ground. This was difficult to do for a while. But once I mastered the pattern of exhaling ever other time my left foot landed, I found myself doing it all the time. A positive side effect of running with this breathing pattern, is that my foot speed has to keep at a consistently fast pace. This method helps me avoid the long lunging strides, because I can’t keep my breathing pattern going with longer strides.

So I was able to make it to the top of the hill with just enough left in the take to make it to the finish line. When the finish line came into site, I had a dreadful realization. The course took us one more lap around the memorial before returning to the start/finish line. I was so concerned with monitoring my pace on my watch that I hadn't really looked at the overall distance covered. If I had paid more attention, I would have realized that if the race finished at the top of the hill, it would have been a half mile short of a 5k. I started to panic a little bit because I wasn't sure if I had enough energy left to make it another half mile around the memorial. But there was only one thing I could do, try my best. I put mind over matter and pushed myself around the last loop and made it safely back down the finish line for a finishing time of 24:52.

I hung around the finish line to see my buddy Charlie finish and then I was off to Eli's t-ball game. I had a nice cool down run by slowly making my way back down the hill to my car, which was parked about ¾ of a mile from the finish line. I made it to Eli's game just as they were starting, so everything had worked out. I got a text message later from my cousin Jennifer. She told me that I had placed first in my age group, so that was a nice surprise! Another great race day was in the books.  

2013 Peaks of Otter Christmas Classic 5k

I have taken a break from blogging, once again. Over the past few months, I have been dealing with some nagging injuries and I have been hardly running at all. The holiday season is always extremely busy for our family. Thanksgiving, Eli's birthday, Christmas, New Year's, and Coy's birthday are all bunched together during the winter months. So it was a great time to be with the family and let my body heal a little.

In November I decided to cut back on my running because I was having a lot of pain in my right side. The doctor thought it was probably scar tissue from my appendectomy last summer. After taking a few weeks to give my side a break, I started back up running but was soon sidelined again with foot pain. After a little research online, I self diagnosed myself with plantar fasciitis. So I decided that after I ran in the Peaks of Otter Christmas Classic 5k in Bedford on December 7^th, I was going to take some more weeks off to let my foot heal.

There was no way I was going to miss this 5k in Bedford. This was going to be the third straight year I would run this race. But the main reason that I was anticipating this race was because I would be running it with my father. Over the previous few months, my dad had started running around the loop in Bedford. I remember the first few times I passed dad running, on my way home from work. It made me very proud of my dad to get out there and get some exercise. I think after his retirement, he had some extra energy to burn. During the fall months, I started bugging dad to sign up for the 5k in Bedford, since it was going to be about the same route he was running during his normal runs.

My father wasn't the only family member taking part in the running that cold December morning. Eli was going to be running his first 1 mile race and Coy was going to take part in the kids' ¼ mile race. I love how my boys get so excited to run in races. They are so cute when they so happy about having their own bib numbers to put on their shirts. I couldn't wait to race day, so that I could see three generations of Stevens' boys running down the streets of Bedford!

First we had to make it to the race. If anyone knows our family, you know that we are not the most punctual group. I usually blame it on having little kids, but it is probably more Anna and my fault. It wasn’t until we were in the car, heading to Bedford, that I realized how late we were running. We had about 15 minutes before the start of the race and since we live about 10 miles from Bedford, I knew it was going to be close. Since parking is limited at the middle school, I had Anna just drop me off and I would run use the short run to the starting line as my warm up.

I made to the starting area with just enough time to find my dad. He was already lined up and ready to go. It was really awesome to see him out there. Not only did I see my father, but my cousin Jennifer was also lining up to run. She was also going to push her 2 year old in a stroller. This was going to be a family event. We only had few minutes to talk before we were running.

Once we were running down Peaks Street, dad started telling me to go ahead and leave him behind. He didn’t want to slow me down. It was great to run with my father by my side. There was no way I was going to run ahead. I didn’t really need to leave him behind anyway, he was moving at a pretty good pace. The weeks leading up to the race, I had been dealing with a couple different injuries. I had already decided that after this race, I was going to take some time off from running to let my body heal some. So I was not trying to break any personal records during this 5k.

By the time we made it to Witfield Drive, we had found a comfortable pace. Now we just needed to maintain this pace until we got to the base of the dreaded hospital hill. Jennifer was also holding strong. She was keeping pace with us, even while pushing her stroller. I always try to break down difficult activities into smaller, more manageable tasks. So while running up a long hill like the one on Whitfield, I like to break it down into smaller sections. First, you just have to make it to the gate to the field on the right side of the road. Once you make it to that point, you set your sights on the fire hydrant. Next goal is the speed limit sign, followed by the intersection with Newton Circle. By this time your legs are usually burning so bad, that really just want to get to Oakwood Avenue.

I think one of the more difficult things about the hill section of this 5k, is that you will have another 1 ½ miles to the finish. You legs are really spent by the time you get up to the top of the hill. Dad and I took some time to slow our pace and let our legs loosen up some after the hill. By the time we got to Longwood Avenue, we were ready to make the final push. We made it back to the middle school in no time. I can’t tell you how proud I was to come down the final home stretch running in stride with my father. I was honored to take part in my dad’s first 5k, he did great!

Soon after the end of the 5k, the kids were lined up to run the ¼ mile race. Coy was taking part in this race around the front parking lots of the middle school. As we lined up, so seem a little apprehensive about the race. He tends to be shy around people he doesn’t know and since we were surrounded by strangers, he was not quite his usual wild self. Coy told us that he wanted Papa to run with him too. So we started the race with me holding his one hand and his Papa holding his other hand.

We made our way around the sidewalk on the front side of the school when I saw the bigger kids’ race starting. Eli was running in the 1 mile race for the older kids. His race’s path was down the Longwood Avenue’s sidewalk. It was a ½ mile down and back route that ended back at the school. Since they had opened Longwood back up for car traffic, I didn’t want Eli running by himself down the sidewalk. So I made sure Coy was okay with me leaving him with dad to finish his race. Then I sprinted to catch up with Eli. Anna had run a short distance with Eli, so he was not alone when I got to him. Both Eli and Coy did incredible jobs in their runs.

I couldn’t be more proud on this chilly December morning. I got to run with my father while he experienced his first 5k. Then I got to run with each of my son’s in races of their own. I have been blessed with such wonderful parents. I know no one can choose their own parents, but I would not trade mine for anything. Eli and Coy didn’t get to pick their father either, but I sure glad God has let me be a part of their life. Life is never easy and there are always going to be obstacles in my way, but with the all the loving people in my life I know I can make it through anything!

Anna’s First 5k

A few months ago, Anna mentioned that she would like to run a 5k sometime. I jumped at the opportunity for her to start running. I really liked the idea of going on runs with Anna. She is my better half and I love spending time with her. So by getting in involved in running, we could have the ability to hang out and still getting in our mileage. Also, having both of us as health as possible is a bonus for our whole family. There is no telling how many calories Anna burns by keeping up with the boys all day long. But I thought that by running, she could help herself by relieving some of the stress that comes with being a full time Mommy.

So we looked for some local 5k races that were going to take place in the next few months. After discussing a few possibilities, she decided that she wanted to run in the Gallop 4 the Greenways 5k on May 11^th. I thought this would be a great first 5k course, since it was relatively flat. Also, Anna liked that there was a kids’ fun run before the 5k and a beach party following the race. The Gallop 4 the Greenways 5k is an annual fund raising event for the Roanoke River Greenway, a network of pedestrian and bicycle trails in Roanoke.

Having a target race day scheduled, Anna wanted me to put together a simple running schedule for her to start. Since she had not being running at all, I built a very informal running plan to slowly get her running for longer durations of time. I believe the first few weeks had runs/walks of around 20 minutes. Week by week, these runs worked up to 30 minutes sessions with longer periods of running. Anna was very dedicated with getting her runs in. I told her that she should plan on making each of the runs on the exact days scheduled, due to our crazy family routines. I didn’t want her to get discouraged if she missed a run here or there.

 

So when I would get home from work, Anna would get on our treadmill while I entertained the boys. On days that she could get on the treadmill at that time, she would get her run in after the boys were asleep. Having made some post-10:00 P.M. runs on the treadmill myself, I knew how horrible those runs can be. But Anna did awesome! As the race day got closer, she began to stress that she wasn’t going to be able to run the entire race. Anna is very competitive and she wanted to do the best she could possibly do in the race. I tried to reinforce the fact that she didn’t have to run the entire time and that is was perfectly acceptable to walk for periods of the race. Anna continued to get her runs in when she had the free time. I was so proud of her dedication!

As race day arrived, Anna started to have more anxiety of the race. Even though she didn’t talk about her anxiety, I could tell by the way she was acting. She was nervous about her first race, which was totally understandable. I still get nervous before every race, so I don’t think that is going to stop after she gets past her first race. This race was a little different than ones I have run because it started at 5 o’clock in the evening. We got to the race at about 4:30, but we had picked Anna and the boys’ race numbers up the night before. So everyone was ready for their runs. After hitting the bathroom a couple times, we made our way to the starting line.

The kids’ race was about ½ a mile and the starting line was the same as the 5k race. The course was a simple down and back format, so the finish line was back at the starting point of the 5k race. Since Anna had to be ready to start the 5k, I had to run with Eli and Coy. I knew Eli was going to be much faster than Coy and I, so I told him beforehand that he needed to stop when he got too far in front of us. I didn’t want Eli to get out of my sight during the race and not knowing whether or not Anna was going to be able to be at the finish line, I didn’t want to lose Eli in a crowd of people.

 

The boys both did great. They both ran the entire race and Eli did a great job of letting Coy catch back up to him. Once we got close to the finish line, Eli decided he had enough of waiting for us and he sprinted to the finish. I got a little scared when I saw Eli running into the crowd of people at the finish line, until I heard Anna’s voice say “Go Eli”. I knew she would keep an eye on Eli, while Coy and I finished. The boys were so cute running there race. I love how they get so excited to run in a race. I hope they will always find running and exercising to be fun.

 

Just after the kids’ race was over, the 5k race started. I was able to spot Anna in the crowd of runners as they went by starting line. I was very strange watching a start of a race not taking part. Anna has been such a great supporter of me during numerous races, I was happy to stand on the sideline and cheer for once. As soon as all the runners had made their way past us, the boys and I went to the playground across the street to kill some time. After about 15 minutes, I rounded up the boys and we headed across the pedestrian footbridge and to the finishing area. We picked out a spot where we would be able to see Anna as she crossed the bridge and the finish line.

After 10 or so minutes, I spotted Anna coming across the footbridge. With only 50 yards left in the race, she looked very strong. I pointed her out to the boys and they both cheered and waved to their mommy. It was a very exciting moment for everyone. I was so proud of Anna. She had been so determined in her training for her first 5k. She had worked very hard to get to this point and she was about to accomplish her goal she had set months earlier. She crossed the finish line was a very respectful time for a first time 5k race.

 

 

Most of Anna’s family came out to cheer for her. So she had plenty of supports to greet her after the race. It was a great evening of racing. I was so proud of Eli, Coy, and Anna. They had all done so well in their races. It was nice to sit on the sidelines and be a supporter for a change. I owe it to Anna, since she has been so supportive of my running the past couple of years. The best news to come out of this race experience is that Anna wants to run another 5k! I was hoping she had a good enough racing experience that she would want to do it again. I look for to possible completing a race with my wife very soon.

Anna’s family all went home pretty quickly after the race was over. Anna, the boys, and I hung around to listen to some beach music and take in some of the festival that followed. The festivities were short lived though. Some very ominous storm clouds formed overhead. After a close lightning flash and crack of thunder, we headed to the parking garage. We had about 300 yards to make it to the covered garage, but we soon realized that we were not going to beat the downpour. Since the land is so flat and open down by the river, we could see the rain coming for about 30 seconds prior to getting wet. All the sudden the wind started gusting at about 30 miles per hour and the rain started. I was running with the both boys in the stroller at this point. Coy was terrified and was crying. I tried to pull down the sun shades over their seats, but the wind was blowing the rain sideways so it didn’t really help. By the time we made it to the garage we were soaked. The boys were in a state of shock. Anna was the only one of us with extra dry clothes. We had to strip down as much as possible for the ride home, but not before we stopped by Chipotle for some well-deserved burritos.

What a great day (minus the storm)!

2013 Frozen Toe 10k

For 2013, I decided to take part the Mountain Junkies RoanokeNon-Ultra Trail Series (RNUTS). This race series is made up of 6 trail races in the Roanoke area varying in lengths of 5k to 25k. I took part in some of the Mountain Junkies races last year and I had a great time. So, it only made sense to try and complete all the races in their series this year.

The first race of this series, the Frozen Toe 10k,  took part on Roanoke Mountain. The starting area was at a church behind the Outback Steakhouse off of Rt. 220, south of Roanoke. This race took place on January 5^th and it was a very chilly morning. The race distance was 10k and it covered a section of trails that I had never run before. Going into the race, I didn’t have any target finishing time. This was only my second trail 10k and the previous one was over 9 months in the past. So the plan was to run at a comfortable pace and finish the race.

The race was pretty uneventful, so I do not have a lot of details. The most exciting part of the race was right before the race started. Missy Bradley and I were talking about our new running shoes we had received for Christmas, when all the sudden the gun went off. I failed to start up my GPS watch and was not really ready to start running. Having no choice, I spent the first 0.5 mile trying to get my watching up and running.

With temperatures below freezing for the entire race, the Frozen Toe 10k was a very fitting name for this race. It was a really nice course and the conditions (other than the temperature) were great. I got set with a comfortable pace and the miles started ticking away. I got to the finish line with an official time of 54:34. This time was almost 4 ½ minutes faster than my previous trail 10k race. So I was pleased, even though I knew I could have pushed myself a bit more.

I was very glad to get to my car and start up the heat after this race. It was a great day of running and a great start to my racing year. I am looking forward to a great year of trail racing through the trails in the Roanoke area. The next stop on the series is the Explore Your Limits 5k/10k at the Explore Park off the Blue Ridge Parkway. I am looking to improve on my 10k PR time at the Explore Park in February.

2012 Peaks of Otter Christmas Classic 5k

 

This was my first repeat racing event since I started entering races a little over a year ago. For those that aren't familiar with this race, it is an annual run put on as a fund raiser for the Bedford YMCA. The course starts at the Bedford Middle School and routes runners around the famous "loop". Last year this was my second ever 5k race and I finished with a time of 24:50. Having run these roads hundreds of times in 2012, I was hoping to better my time this year.

 For once, I actually got to a race with enough time to actually warm up. I read some 5k racing guides online and all of these writings talked about how important it was to warm up for shorter races. So I made myself run at a decent pace down Longwood for about 10 minutes. I made it back to the starting line in enough time to get a decent spot in the crowd. I quickly spotted a friend, Travis Wingfield, right in front of me. After talking to him really quick, the race was off. I decided that I would stick with Travis as long as I could. I had written down mile times I needed in order to get a finishing time under 23:00. I had planned to stick with those splits all week leading up to the race and it took me 5 seconds to abandon them.

After setting a pace that was much faster than I anticipated, it was too late to change. I had to just do my best at keeping up the blistering (for me at least) pace. By the time I got to the infamous hospital hill, I was really feeling the burn in my legs. I was just concentrating on keeping my foot speed up. I had run this hill at least 50 times since last year's race, so I felt pretty confident I could get to the top without dropping off my pace too much. The good news was that I made it to the top at a pretty good rate; the bad news was that my legs felt like they were sticks of wood with bricks attached to the bottom.

 The next mile was spent trying to get my legs to speed back up to the rate they were turning over at the beginning of the race. With about 1/2 mile remaining, my legs were starting to loosen back up. I was glad because one last small incline to the middle school was still to come. I was able to finish this last section of the race fairly comfortably and I was happy to beat my last year’s time by 1 minute and 32 seconds. My official time was 22:12. This time didn't beat my best 5k time of 21:47 (which was set on a very flat cross country style course last August), but it was fast enough to get me 3rd in my age group.

 Even though I was very happy with my performance in the 5k, the highlight of my race day was still yet to come. Eli and Coy were both taking part in the kids' 1/4 mile run. They were both so excited when I gave them their "numbers" the night before. We pinned them to their sweatshirts that night and had all their running gear laid out for the morning. By the time the kids race was about to start, I ended up with the boys so that I could encourage Coy and get him to stay at the starting line. I could not have been more proud of my boys that morning. It is not that I want my boys to be successful in sports; I want them to be willing to try anything and do always do their best.

 

 

 Just before the start of the race, Coy spotted Mommy about 20 yards in the distance, trying to get some pictures. He decided that he was going to go hang out with her, so he took off. Just then, the race organizer reached out and grabbed his shirt. While trying to be helpful, Josh scared Coy and he started balling. Now we were down to one runner! With Coy out of the race, I could pay a little more attention to Eli. I believe he has inherited his Mommy and Daddy's competitiveness. Once the race was started, he definitely had his game face on (except when Mommy was taking pictures, of course). Eli completed his lap around the middle school parking lot while running 100% of the time. As I ran past Anna and Coy, I stopped and helped Coy at least finish the race. He was in a much better mood by this time.

 Eli and Coy both finished the race and received medals. They were so proud, but not as proud as their parents. It is so much more rewarding to see your children excel at something, than anything I can personally accomplish. This is a feeling that I believe only parents can understand. I look forward to having many more experiences like these with Eli and Coy. So all in all, the 33rd annual Peaks of Otter Christmas Classic 5k was a great time and I look forward to taking part in the race for years to come.

 

Blossom to Bottle 5k

This morning I ran in a 5k race held at the Johnson's Orchard in Bedford. All proceeds of this race went to The YMCA's Oncology Wellness Program, so it was for a good cause. Plus, how often to get to run through an apple orchard? The course was a lot tougher than I expected. Even though the orchard is located at the foot of the Peaks of Otter, I was stupid to not expect some crazy hills. I think the combination of the hills and having to run on primarily uneven grass surfaces took its toll on my legs. I had no energy at the end to give myself a push. I was still able to finish with a time of 24:05. Which was not my best 5k time ever, but this was my first "trail" 5k and it was on a very challenging course. So I guess I pretty happy with my performance.

There were quite a few Bedford folks in the race, so it was nice to see the familiar faces. I also got to high five Eli half way through the race, so that gave me a little extra boast for the second half of the race. Also, I had Chris Blair cheering me on during several sections of the race. He was working the race for the Y and was on a 4 wheeler making sure everyone was taking the correct path. It was a great morning and it was great to catch up with a number of friends.