run megan run. : Race Report: Timothy Roadrunner 5K

Athens, GA

October 6, 2012

This race was my first Georgia road race, last October. Last October, I was literally just starting getting back into running after moving here to Athens in August, and was beginning the idea of toying with running a half. A few weeks into (casually) running, I signed up for this; coincidentally, last year was their inaugural race too! Fitting, don't you think?

I toyed all week with the idea of running this again -- oh, I wanted to. But with a half on Sunday? Was that the best idea ever? But I was so in love with returning to the only race I'd ever been able to repeat (so far), that I decided I just had to go for it. Maybe I could even earn myself a course PR (and if you follow me on Twitter, Daily Mile, or even Facebook, you know the answer to this). So heck, let's just run it. The best part about local races, especially, is that even on race day, registration is usually no more than $20. I'd call that a win, wouldn't you? And this race registration not only includes the super adorable (non-white!) race shirt, but a free pancake breakfast afterwards, cooked by the local PTA's dad's group. Awesome.

Saturday morning brought around nothing but gorgeous weather for a race! No clouds, no breeze, just perfect, still, soon-to-be sunshine-y weather! Made for a great race to run in just shorts and a tech tee - the way I like it. The race is based completely around the elementary school -- many of the %K runners are teachers, nearly all the fun run kids are obviously students at the school (they do classroom contests), many of the volunteers are parents, PTA members, or just parent volunteers. Love that environment!The school's settled in a neighborhood full of trees, a few deceiving rolling hills, but all out in a super pretty area on the west side of Athens.

My tempo runs lately have been pretty outstanding, so I knew that if I ran carefully, I could do some mad work at this race. Smart (or not so smart) me didn't look at the course map, so it wasn't until we turned out first corner that I realized they'd reversed the course from last year - well, that's sneaky, but then I figured I could do even more! Forget those rolling hills, they go in both directions. Duh. Ah well, I took off for the first mile and felt great - so kept booking it as long as I thought I could keep chugging ahead. I love picking a target for a race and using them as my pacer -- I ended up passing most of the folks I was using as my goal ranges, so I'm pretty happy with that in the end!

Thank you, tempo runs, for making my speedwork seem not so terrible, for making a 5K that much more bearable but fun and challenging all at once, and for making me feel like I can accomplish this each and every time I try.

First, age group, 25-29.

Boom.

This went way faster than I could have even thought -- turns out course is a tiiiiiny bit short, but it's going full in my books.

5K PR : 27:19.

Boom.

(L-R), 3rd AG, 2nd AG, 1st AG.

Amazing way to start this weekend! Georgia race #13, first race ever repeated, new 5K PR and best yet... free pancakes! All in all, an amazing Saturday morning! I hung around long enough for pancakes, though apparently missed all the fruit, and hung around for awards (again, duh). Another plus to small, local races? Really cool awards instead of typical medals or certificates -- like this guy I won for 2nd AG at last year's Jack-o-Lantern Jog. The Timothy coordinated worked with a local potter to create these stunning little trivets -- I need to find a small stand or something, but don't you just love it?

Happy way to start the weekend, and just the boost I needed going into Sunday's half marathon! 5K PR in the books, loads of free pancakes, and a great Saturday overall!