RAP River Run!

Last Saturday I ran the RAP River Run 5k (yeah, yeah, I'm a little behind in posting this, but better late than never). I also don't really have any pictures, although, I'll probably add them in sometime this week, I'll let you know. I added them, lucky you :)

Anyway, the race went great! I didn't run at all during the week leading up to it because my leg was still bothering me, so I was a little nervous going into it, but it turned out to be a lot of fun! This was only my second race, but I already can't wait for the next one!

Here I am laughing at Todd because someone's head blocked the camera...

Exhibit A

 The race took place in downtown New Port Richey, FL. and the running route went along the Pithlachascotee River. It was a breezy, shaded route, perfect for a 5k! I really wanted to run the whole way, but ended up walking a little towards the end. With that being said, I still managed to finish 6th in my age group (out of 24, I believe)!! Sweet! My final time was 33:28. I'm happy with it.

Blurred the other people for their privacy

Here is a pic that I took on my phone while running; this guy:

USA! USA! USA!

Keep in mind that we are in Florida; it was in the 80's and humid! Now if the sight of him doesn't kick your ass into gear, nothing will.

In the home stretch

The RAP River Run benefited the RAP (Runaway Alternative Project) House. The RAP house provides shelter, food, services, clothes, etc. to 10-17 year olds who are homeless, runaways, foster kids, or who are otherwise in need of a place to stay. What a great cause!

Overall it was a great race and I will definitely like to do it again next year. Maybe I'll even do both the 5 miler & the 5k!

Peace out!

P.S. My leg has been feeling great and I've been easing back into running by doing 1-2 miles every other day. I'm going to keep increasing my mileage slowly until I can jump back into doing my marathon training plan! Woo!! I'll keep you updated on my progress.

My First 5k!

My first race was a 5k at the Tampa Airport! I chose that race because it was an awesome location, a 5k,  and I knew that registering for a race would be the best motivation for getting out there and running! (I ran this race in late April, before I was using any training plan).

Posing before the race

 

The 5k took place an a runway at the Tampa Airport, so cool! The downside to a runway race is... no shade! They did have a fire truck shooting water at us at least.



Coming up on the finish line!

As I mentioned, I did not follow any plan and just made sure that I was able to run 3 miles before race day. I finished the race around 32 minutes (I'm not exactly sure of my time as I didn't have my phone to use Map my Run). I definitely got caught up in the excitement of the start line and ran way too fast for the first mile. I ended up burning myself out early on. Lesson learned. I've been focusing more on distance than speed just because of this. I want to be able to run far without having to stop for walking breaks, even if it means going at a slower pace. Eventually, I'll focus more on speed and increasing my pace. Maybe I should rename my blog to Not So Fast Jogger.

Just like flying a jet plane

 

I had a great time at the Tampa International Airport 5k Runway Fun run. Registration and raffle ticket proceeds benefited the United Way Suncoast.

Official pictures of the event can be found on their Flickr page: Runway Fun Run (I'm not in any of them.... yes, I looked through them all). Although there are none of my handsome mug, there are cool pictures of the police helicopter that hovered over us (security yo!), the fire truck, and better views of the actual runway we ran on.

I finished!!!!
(p.s. that lady told me I needed to get quieter shoes, wtf lady? Get out of my pictures!)


I can't wait for my next race!!!

Love,
Constance