Cork Town 5K Results

Sunday March 11th, I ran an extremely popular 5K race in Detroit; The Cork Town 5K.  This event is held every year just hours before the annual St. Patrick's Day parade.   I believe this years event capped out at over 7600+ runners.  That is a lot of people and a lot of green!  It was a beautiful day for the race.  Warm & Sunny!!  I was a little nervous about this race.  Not because of my time, I wasn't planning to run hard.  But because of the large crowd and the uneven road.  Everything went smoothly.  No one knocked me over, I saw a fellow blogger/runner friend Jen running an amazing post injury race and I stayed well below my goal time of 30 minutes.  That makes me laugh.  Here I was last year trying for a 20 minute 5k and this year I am hoping to just stay under 30 miles. 

Official Results:
Finish Time: 28:33
Pace: 9:13
A/G Place: 176/836
Overall Place: 2,500/7,654

Donna, Jeff & I prior to the race (we decided to sport the Tigers gear)

Donna & I running a couple warm up miles

Post race with a few of my fellow running friends



Rollie Hopgood 5K race results and new running stuff

I made a last minute decision to race a 5K on Saturday.  I've been running daily, but not putting in the time or energy to do any speed work.  I figured a 5K would be a great way to force myself to run fast.  I got to the race site about 45 minutes before the 9am start.  I hit the rest room and then ran a 1 mile warm up.  I made my way to the start line and tried to push towards the front.  at 9am sharp, we were off.  When we reached the one mile marker the volunteer reading the times yelled out 6:40.  Crap.  No way can I keep that pace.  I am not sure what I was at when we reached the 2 miles marker.  I was extremely hot and did not want to look down at my Garmin.  Around 2.25 miles, we ducked into the woods.  What a relief.  Out of the sun and into the shade.  I was trying to keep up with this guy who had been just in front of me the entire race.  I passed him, but a few strides later he passed me.  I ended up crossing the finish line in 21:55, 7:04 pace.  I had wanted to break my previous 5K PR of 21:38, but today wasn't the day.  My time was good enough for 1st place in my age group and there was only 1:09 between me and first female overall.

After the race I did a 1 mile cool down and spotted my Uncle, Harrison Hensley.  He looked great!!  I hope that I can still run a race at his age.  He's 79!  He took 2nd in his age group. 

Here's my gold medal.  :-) 

Official Results:

Time: 21:55

Pace: 7:04

Place: 1st / 17 in Age Group

Overall: 39/284

In other running news, I purchased some new gear.  I ordered a pair of Brooks Ghost 3's on a whim.  I have always ran in Brooks Adrenaline which are a stability shoe.  I found the Ghosts, a neutral shoe, on Running Warehouse for $59 plus an additional 20% off!  Not only that, but they come in a narrow!  So for that price, I figured I would order them.  Of course, I ordered the wrong size.  I like a little more room in the toe box.  I ordered another pair in a half size bigger and shipped back the ones that were too small.  I hope they work out.  If not, I will return them since I also ordered a pair of Brooks Adrenalines from my local running store.  They never seem to carry narrows in stock. 

The Brooks Ghost shoes I ordered

I am sure you can see Kara's book in the background of the photo.  I had a 40% off coupon for one full price book for Border's.  I was having such a hard time trying to decide which book to buy.  I had the Runner's Palate, Runner's Diet, Complete Book of Running for Women and Kara's book in my hand.  I decided to go with Kara's book.  I am saving it to read while camping at the end of the month. 

I also ordered 2 singlets and 1 short sleeve running top from Running Warehouse.  Again, it was a steal!  $39 for all 3.  They should arrive tomorrow so I hope they fit.  If not, RW has free shipping on all returns so no sweat if I need to ship them back.

Virtual 5K Results

Jeff, a favorite local blogger of mine, organized a virtual 5K. Each person signs up via Jeff's blog and runs their 5K during the dates set. We then report back our results to Jeff and are entered in for various prizes that he is giving away. How cool is that? No registration fees but you still can win goodies. I'm in!

I ran my 5K this morning. My training called for 4 miles, but I was 1 mile short on yesterday's run so I upped it to 5. Since I need to run my virtual 5K I logged 5.1 miles total; 1 mile warm up at 8:25 pace, 3.1 miles at 7:30 pace and 1 mile cool down at 8:20 pace. Total time for 5.1 miles 40 minutes.

Here is Jeff's blog. http://detroitrunner.blogspot.com/ He's also training for his first marathon!!

Thanks for organizing this event Jeff!

A not too shabby race photo

Only because it's posed! 1st, 2nd and 3rd place 30-34 age group winners at Blitzen the Dotte 5K

Weekly Exercise

I am not sure if I am enjoying my "free style" training or not. At times I like that I am not committed to a program and at other times, I can't wait for January because then I start training for my spring marathon.

Here is how last weeks running and exercise went. Not too pleased with my mileage at all! I need to make sure to stick to my goal of 25-30 miles per week minimum!

Monday: 90 minutes P90X Yoga X - first time doing this DVD and really enjoyed it. I look forward to doing this again in the near future.
Tuesday: Rest Day
Wednesday: 6.09 mile run, 48:26 7:57 pace, push ups 5 x 15
Thursday: 5.24 mile run, 41:23 7:54 pace, 3 core exercises
Friday: unexpected rest day, core work
Saturday: 5K race (3.19 miles) 22:51 7:09 pace, 1 mile warm up on treadmill at the gym, biceps & triceps, 4.19 total miles
Sunday: 3 mile run on treadmill, back and core work

Total Mileage: 18.52 miles

Blitzen the Dotte 5K Results

Saturday I was signed up to run a local 5K that takes place prior to the Wyandotte Christmas parade (yes, the parade is before Thanksgiving). This is the 3rd running of the race and grows larger each year. I ran this course last year that takes you down part of the parade route, on to the local golf course and finishes behind the boat club. My mom and Joshuah decided to walk the 5K. My goal was to beat last years time of 23:08 and, if possible, PR by finishing in under 21 minutes. I reached one goal and finished in 22:51. Every one's Garmin were measuring the course at 3.19. My Garmin actually read my pace being 7:09, not 7:22 as posted on the results page. I placed 2nd (same place as last year!) out of 48 in my age group. After I headed back on to the course to find my mom and son. Josh was talking her ear off. LOL!! I walked with them and when we reached the 3 mile marker, Josh sprinted to the finish. Now he wants to run a 5K on his own. Yay! I am super excited and hope that running can be something I share with my son like my father shares with me.

Next up, Thanksgiving day 10K!

Official Results:
Time: 22.51
Pace: 7:22 (although, my Garmin is reading 7:09 due to the extra distance)
Age Group Place: 2/48
Gender Place: 64/647

A Touching Event

I know it's months away, but I am really looking forward to running this race. All proceeds will be donated to Dolores & Harrison Hensley to purchase a wheel chair assessable minivan for Dolores.

Dolores is my aunt. My great aunt to be exact. My dad's aunt and uncle.

Unc (that is what we call him) used to run races almost every weekend, sometimes 2! Not only that, he put on the famous Run Thru Hell in Pinckney, MI which lasted many, many years. That is, until my aunt Dolores had a stroke. Now it's been 2 years since the last Run Thru Hell and it's been over a year since my Unc has ran. This is a man in his late 70's, ran numerous marathons including Boston, etc...

After 2 years of not having this famous race, someone decided to take this on and make it a one time event to help out two of some of the most dedicated people involved in the Michigan running community.

I really, really look forward to this. And I am hoping they have a turn out better then any of the Run Thru Hell races Unc put on!

http://www.runningfoundation.com/Run_Thru_Hell_Halloween.html
If you have been a runner in Michigan for the last several years then you
undoubtedly know or have seen Dolores and Harrison Hensley. They put on
the Run Thru Hell Race for many years which was a quality event that
thousand of runners competed in. They would also travel to races every
weekend and even go to mid week races. Dolores would help with
registration and work the finish chute and Harrison would take with him entry
forms from hundreds of races so runners could look through them and take
the forms home. They were very active and important people in the Michigan
running community. This all came to end in November of 2008 when Dolores
suffered a stroke. Now these once active and vibrant people are confined to
their house. They miss seeing all the runners every weekend and we miss
seeing their smiles and all the help they brought to the race.
This race is for them. This is a one time race that will not be held again. The
entire entry fee will go to the purchase of a wheelchair assessable minivan
so Dolores and Harrison can once again go to the races.

5K PR!! YMCA River Run

I ran a local 5K Friday evening. Normally I am not a fan of evening races but I wanted to get another short and fast race in prior to my half marathon and start of marathon training. Plus it was put on by my gym, the YMCA. I had the woman who organizes the event stop me twice at the gym to ask me if I planned to run it. So I did. and boy am I glad! I had two goals set; to beat my previous PR of 23:02 and to come in around 22:50 or faster.

I finished in 21:38. That is a 6:59 pace! Who knew I had it in me to break a 7 minute per mile pace?! I also placed first in my age group.

Official Results:
time- 21:38
pace- 6:59
age place- 1st out of 22
overall place- 16 out of 239

and a quick shout out to my dad who competed in a duathlon today. 5K run, 25K bike, 5K run. He finished in 1:32 and placed 1st in his age group.

Successful 5K finish!

I PRed! I beat my previous finish time by 9 seconds for a new PR of 23:02! I really think I could have come in under 23 minutes had I not realized I ran the first mile in 6:53. That really messed with my head. I started to convince myself there is no way I could keep that pace and slowed down. I was able to pick it up at mile 2 and again when I hit mile 3. And of course, I had to pass the young guy running next to me, so I sprinted past him to the finish line.

Official Results:
23:02
7:26 pace
2nd/42 in my age group
63rd/442

Next up, the Turkey Trot 10K where I hope to PR again! Time to beat is 48:45.

Hoping for a speedy 5K

Tomorrow morning I am running my first 5K race in over a year. The last time I ran a 5K was in September of 2008. I was the female overall winner with a finish time of 23:11. it was a smaller race, but that was my best 5K finish time! Since then I have stuck with longer distances; 10K, half marathons and a full marathon. My goal is to beat my previous time. I am not feeling to confident. If I can run at a 7:27 pace, I will beat it. I have not done much speed work, just a couple sessions this week. I also have NEVER ran a distance and not beaten my previous best time. If I do not finish with the same time or faster, I know I will be so disappointed in myself. I really need to convince myself that I got this! I can beat 23:11.

Wish me luck.

My running shoes miss me!

My running shoes miss me. I have not been running all that much since the marathon. Last weekend I ran 4.88 miles on Saturday and didn't run again until last night; and I only ran 4 miles. I plan on going for my first long-ish run tomorrow morning; 9 miles.

I've been working out and focusing on strength training, but really need to put forth the effort to get more running in. I do not want to lose the endurance and distance that I have gained. So starting next week, I will make sure I run a minimum 3-4 times a week!

I am running a 5K on the 21st. I am really hoping to beat my previous 5K PR of 23:11. That's my goal anyway.