My ankle is stillllll recovering from the sprain. I’m sure you’re tired of hearing about, but frankly I’m tired of having a kankle. Needless to say, I thought it would be healed by now. It’s funny how fast your body can get out of shape. Every run feels a little easier, but I still haven’t had that one great run. You know the one where your body and breathing are perfectly in synch; every step you feel more empowered. Those runs are what keep me coming back for more…
I’m trying my darnedest to get back into running shape though. To stay motivated, I’m trying to run a race whenever I can. A couple Saturdays ago me, Brian and about 200 runners ran the Maya Angelou 5k in Rock Creek Park. This small race benefited a big cause, the Maya Angelou Schools. These schools help students in Washington D.C. who have not succeeded in traditional schools. Small races are a nice change of pace, and they have a sense of community that can be easily missed in a race with 50,000 people.
Signing up for this race, I must admit, I was a little hesitant. The last race I ran in Rock Creek Park, the Caribbean Sounds Race 5k & 10k race, was a disaster. They really were on island time and somehow forgot a major part of the race, THE 5K TURN AROUND. As much as I appreciated a few extra calories burned, I’m pretty sure that’s the first and last 4.6 mile timed race I’ll pay for Carribbean Sounds.
Alas, the lush scenic Rock Creek Park lured me in, and I decided to give it a second shot. Brian on the other hand was enchanted by the chance of another medal. He’s really building a collection now. Little medal whoreder.
The race festivities began with a 5 minute boot camp warm up. I was just entertained watching Brian, so warming up was an added bonus.
There was much excitement surrounding the start of race with plenty of Maya Angelou students ready to run their hearts out. I mean when the race director said the magic word, those kids took off, running their hardest just like they were playing a game of tag. Their sprint lasted for about a minute, but their spirit was contagious and I tried to use their enthusiasm throughout the race.
The course at Rock Creek has its upsides and downsides-literally. For about a half mile of the race you run completely down hill, which is great and all, but then your last half mile is back up that same hill. I felt pretty good for most of the race, trying to keep a steady pace, saving enough energy for that uphill. My tactic for running hills is to run up them as fast as I can. They’re gonna be painful either way, so you might as well suck it up and get through it.
SHOUT OUT: I have to give a quick shout out to my girl TJ. I’m sporting her running hat in my rocking photo above. I may not ran even close to my PR, but I did run like a mother. Check out her running and work out gear here.
I crossed the finish line with a time of 26:06 and later found out I placed 5th amongst the ladies . Definitely not close to my PR, but hey I’ll take it. Brian on the other hand, hit his PR of 20:04 and finished 2nd amongst the men. He raked in another medal so he couldn’t have been happier. Oh did I mention he hit that time with a sprained ankle? Yes, somehow my sprained ankle was contagious. Guess that means I can’t use the ol’ sprained ankle excuse any more. Geez, thanks Brian.
The next day I checked out Washington Running Report to hopefully register for some more local runs and guess who was featured on the front page? Brian!! And guess who didn’t register for another race? Me. Too distracted by my fast boyfriend.
My only complaint:
The health fair after made me realize just how immature I really am. Pretty much every booth was centered around safe sex and I really thought I could hold it together, but when I saw the personal lubricant and vagina model…I just had to walk away. Sorry Maya Angelou, but I just wasn’t prepared for that at 9:30 a.m.
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