It was PR Week! Second the 10K

While training for the 5k I decided that I may as well sign up for a 10k too! Last time I ran a 10k was 5 years ago and I had really just started running. It was the Jingle all the Way 10k here in DC. I clocked in at 1:29! Now, I have ran some really weird distances but I somehow that is the only 10k I had done. So I decided since my training runs that are 6 miles were usually around 1:12 to 1:15 I could go ahead and run another PR race!

So I signed up for the Capital Hill Classic 10k!

Overall the race was ok.
The good: Most of the route was beautiful, it was neat to look at the row homes and DC landmarks. Friendly people and great volunteers, plenty of post race snacks!
The ok: Mile 3 to mile 4.5 of this race was awful!!! It was in a parking lot (a huge parking lot) and you had to run the outer loop on a a very narrow trail. I was constantly bumping into people and it was very congested. Maybe that is why the drummers were there to encourage us! Ha! They were good! Also, I really didn't care for the cotton t-shirt. I don't wear them, they are cut wide and not comfortable. It will just go on my shelf with the others...too bad too the design is cute.

My friend Alexa from KC flew in for a mini vacation and to run a race with me! So glad she was able to come out and visit! It has been fun!

Selfie before the start at the Capital! 

So Alexa is thankfully is a lot like me and likes to get to places a bit early so there is no stress about being late! Thankful that we did plan to get to the metro when they opened because we needed to be on the first train that morning since they were doing maintance and were only running trains every 20 minutes! We arrived at the race and had 30 minutes before the start to unwind! 

The race started at 8:30am sharp and once again the heat and humidity was awful...but you suck it up and deal with it! My plan for this race was to pace myself and keep my pace at under 11 minute miles! I did really well pacing myself..I am sure people wonder why I look at my watch all the time but I really wanted to finish without being totally wiped out! I did really well and my overall pace was 10:52. Miles 1-3 were great and I was right on track...then the dreaded parking lot miles 3-4.5...on a trail with 100's and 100's of my closest friends! You can see on my Garmin my time drops a but but I stayed on track and focused. Coming out of the parking lot was a nice hill...pace is off there..opps! Then I am back on track. I hit the 6 mile mark (according to Garmin) and I kick it up a notch because I am thinking, "Yes, I am going to beat the time I have in my head of 1:11!" and then .2 miles later I see the 6 mile mark...hum..something is not right! Ugh, the course is long! Oh man! Well, needless to say my Garmin 6.2 time was 1:07.58 and the official race time was 1:09.24 for 6.38 miles. That is still over a 20 minute PR from the last 10K I did! 

 Official time and Garmin time were the same!

A sweaty mess but done! 

It was PR Week! First the 5K!

I have been following a faster 5k training plan for awhile now and while some of my training was derailed by surprise vacations (more on that later) I still seemed to PR in both my races this week!

First up: The National Police Week 5k in DC.

It has been while since I have ran a 5k for time, the last 5k I was planning on running for time my daughter signed up at the last minute and I was so happy that she wanted to run with me I didn't care if we ran, walked,  or crawled!

Let me back up a bit...my fasted 5k was 2 years ago in Kansas at the Garmin race and I clocked in at 31.14. I was actually just out there having a good time and I didn't even pay attention to time until I heard the announcer say we have (insert someone's name) at 29.30...WTH...so I ran my hardest and PR'ed that race.  I thought it was a fluke or the course was short, but I had never ran that fast and was super excited.

Now..2 years later....I finally beat that time! Whew!!! It took awhile! I picked the National Police Week 5k because a friend of mine from the gym has done it for a couple of years and recommended it.

The Good: Packet pickup was a breeze and it a neat location. I was also very please with the race shirt. It is dri-fit and cut for a woman. I have already worn it a couple of times! As for the race it's self I loved it. I enjoy the energy of the police officers coming together to support families of the fallen. The police officers ran in groups and sang cadences while they ran. The course was mostly flat and they had plenty of food and water after.

Perfect morning for Packet Pickup! 

2 Mile run, followed by Packet pick up, 

followed by Arsenal of Democracy Flyover

(WW11 Victory Capitol Flyover)

The only down side to this race was the heat and the humidity! Whew!!!! But there is nothing you can do about that except deal with it!!

My plan to PR this race was to run as fast as I could for as long as I could. Ha...my first mile was 8:54, never, ever have I ran a mile that fast!!! Mile 2 was 9:57 and Mile 3 was 10:13..over all my average pace was 9:37! I was so happy! So my Garmin time was 30:10 and official net time was 30:08. I was kicking myself a little because 9 seconds faster and I would have been under 30.

Unofficial Garmin time!! 

My family came out to support me while I ran and I was so happy to see them there towards the end it really did give me a bit of a boost! And they are so sweet they brought me a donut from my favorite donut place in Alexandria! Sugar Shack!! :) 

Mmmmmm!!!!

My friend Melissa was also able to run with me (ha...I mean ahead of me)!! This was her first official 5k and she rocked it! Clocking in somewhere around 27 minutes! She used to say I don't want to pay for a 5k but I have her convinced to sign up for another one in the fall! One I have been trying to do for about 2 years now! 

So fun to run with friends!

Do you see the blue dog? 

Blue Dog for Band of Blue!