this one only took a week… but that’s not bad right? As usual, lots happening every single NY minute but I really want to stay on top of this!

The R U N 5K is only two years old and I had never done. Yeah. Not sure why. I always feel strange running on a weekday, I am never sure what to eat or when to stop eating, and it’s always really hot in August in NYC. But this time, riding high on my RACE EVERYTHING mode, I signed up. It’s about 10 days after the Brooklyn version of the race, which had been really hot, so I wasn’t expecting much other than a good effort.

I worked a couple of hours at registration and a few minutes before the start, (I took my shirt off and) a few of us run to the start, and got corralled in. The first mile has a few downhills so you really have to control it down or you’ll be toast. A very slowly-burned toast, because it was hot also. Well, more humid that hot.

I get moving, and I swear about 6000 people passed me in about 3 minutes. HOW SLOW AM I GOING?? OR, really, how fast is everybody else going? I know it’s a 5K and all, and that the start is fast, but come one people, save a bit for the other 2.1 miles! My mile 1 was 7:00 exactly. I didn’t look which was great because I would have freaked out that it was too fast. Oh. there was Juan spectating right before mile 1 too!

Mile 2 is supposed to be slower and this one also includes the one hill on the course, Cat Hill, which on a 5K turns into a bit of a Tiger Hill… prrrrrr. Mile 2 was 7:24, not so bad. I could have imagined  an 8:30 in my watch. Mind you, I never look at the pace while I am racing, I go wholly by my perceived effort. The whole time I kept trying to decide which one of the 5Ks had worse weather… Then I saw Juan again!!! YEAH!

I run a bit harder. Mile 3 was 6:48. Then I saw the finish and that was it. Last bit was at 5:54 pace. WHAT?

Stats Time!

WHEN IS THE NEXT RACE!??!?! I NEED MORE OF THIS FEELING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!