Last at the Bud Run....

Well here it goes this is what I wrote in my running journal:

Bud Run for Charity 10K
September 15, 2007
9:15am
Rain/Sunny/Cold

Last night I had a relaxing pasta dinner at Tracy's with Bridget, Bill, Wendy, Mitch, Shannon, Kris, and Tracy's husband Andrew. This was to prepare for my first 10K. This really helped because I did not think about the stress of the race. I did not wake up during the night thinking about the race....this is the first time.

Today, I woke up around 6:30am and started getting dressed and ready for the race. I had to pickup Teresa at 8:00am. It was raining and it did not look like it was going to let up. Ron and the Kids came with me and we left our house around 7:45 to pickup Teresa and head to the race.

We got to the brewery. I went to pickup my race packet and Teresa went to sign up. It is still raining. I'm hoping that it will stop. We see Shannon, Kris, Bridget, and Bill. We are waiting around in the tent for a while, we then see Bridget's friend Karen, and Wendy. We all start getting ready for the race. I tell everybody that I want to finish in 1 hour 30 minutes. I'm thinking that it is a joke.

Around 9:10 we head to the start line. Ron and the Kids head down with us to see the start of the race.. We walk to the starting line in front of the brewery. The cannon at the start line goes off and we take off. We start off slow because I want to make sure that I finish the race. Teresa is letting me set the pace. We are not getting passed by the 10K runners, but we are not passing anybody else either.

We are doing what I think is fine. Teresa tells me that we are doing a 11 minute mile. We get to the 5K turn and keep on going on the 10K route. Teresa want me to keep hydrated and makes me take a drink at the water stop. We head up the route.

The fast runners are now make there way down the up and down of the 10k. They have done about 3.5 miles, I have done only about 1.5 miles. OH Well. We see Bill, Karen, Bridget and Wendy pass us. We give everybody encouragement. We try to keep the pace that we were before, but we are heading up hills. I really wasn't expecting any hills.

We get up the first hill and we can see the turnaround. We just ran up the hill, down the hill, make the turnaround, running up the hill to mile 3. This almost wiped me out. Teresa had to talk me up the hill.

We are now heading back to the 5K route. Three gentlemen pas us. They are keeping a great pace. For some reason the State Trooper on the bike keeps near Teresa and I. I half joke that he thinks that I'm going to keel over. Now I can't keep any kind of pace since the hill and the wind that is blowing hard is killing me. We get to the last water stop, I take a drink and this just blows my mind. I want to stop. I'm almost crying. Teresa is yelling to me to keep going. "Just keep your feet moving. You want to say that you finished the race and did not stop." At this point, there is only one other person that is behind us. Teresa keeps on tell me that look we are almost there - I keep on telling her no that is McLane Northeast Not the brewery!!

We get around mile 5 and the person who was last passes me. OK, now I really want to stop, but I don't. Teresa is still yelling/cheering me on. It seems like everything is uphill into the plant. I just want to stop, but Teresa keeps me going. I don't know how she keeps me going, but I do.

We get to straight away right before the last turn and there is Jen waiting for us. She starts running with us and keeps me motivated. She and Teresa joke about singing Bobby Vinton to me. Now the State Trooper on the bike is talking to us. All I want to do is finish.

We make the last turn and I here everybody cheering me on. There is Trac, Kris, Shannon, Bridge and Wendy. They were all there to see me finish. There is also Ron, Andy, and Brian cheering me on.

We finish 1:16:21. Scored 167 of 168. They scored Teresa last. Everybody comes to see us. I'm done, just spent. We head up to the beer tent. I'm not doing so well, trying to take in any kind of beverage that I can. In the tent, it was just getting to loud, Teresa has to get home to Troy to go to work, and Ron wants to leave. So, after my 5th freeze pop, one frozen drink, and 2 waters, we left. I just slink right into the car.

This was the hardest race that I have ever done. Mentally, I was not ready for the extra miles and the hills. I'm rethinking my goals. I'm going to do 5ks and 4 mile races for another year, while training for another 10K. I will try the Bud Run 10 next again next year, but will not try another 10K until then.

So that is that. I finished Dead Last. You know how there is a pace car that is in front and in the back of every race. Well at this race, I had a police escort. Brian that I did something wrong during the race and was in trouble because the police was behind me. Spoken like a future delinquent. Next week 10Kan 5K race.