Why do I run in July? I keep asking myself that each passing year. It's always hot. It's always miserable. Sure, there's the outlier race with perfect conditions (meaning to me a slight cold front with cloud coverage) that surprises you in July, but they're all just hot, sticky and hard (sounds like a food review of Winger's chicken fingers). Why do I keep going back to July races?
Well, one, I love to run. Secondly, running is very much a social event for me. I love seeing and being around my friends. Having been a part of the running community here in Utah for the past 10+ years I've made a bunch of friends that I love being around. But, then thirdly, I'm a sucker for a cool medal and t-shirt ... some things never change over the years.
After last weekend's race I was optimistically pessimistic about what my experience was going to be like for my 10K at the Timp Half. I knew it was going to be hot (because I obsessively checked my weather app for Saturday's weather nearly three times a day during the week) and that the 10K course was going to be relatively flat with some rolling gentle hills. The course was essentially the second half of the half marathon course. Having done the Timp Half a good half dozen times or so, I knew what to expect during the 10K.
But, I also knew I could do a 10K, especially much better than a half marathon done under-trained and in the heat. I didn't set any time goal I had to meet. I just wanted to get outside and do it. But, I expected my time to be anywhere between 1:20-1:40 minutes depending on the conditions. The goal was really just to work on getting my legs moving while doing my run/walk method (which is three minutes running and 90 seconds walking).
The day before the race my father-in-law decided to sign up for the 10K as well. I've really enjoyed having a new running buddy lately and I won't lie, it's still weird thinking that not only is it my father-in-law, but that I have a father-in-law at all! I've been married now for two months and it's just crazy thinking back to 5-6 months ago and realizing that all of this was nowhere on my radar. Crazy, crazy, crazy ... but, that's life and a post for another day.
But, Van and I decided to carpool down to American Fork together on race morning. Living in South Jordan now is so nice because I don't have to block out an hour or more for some of these races in Utah County. It was less than a half hour drive and we were there by 5am. After meeting up with my friend KP the 10K buses loaded at 5:30am we were off to the start line, which was at a church parking lot about a quarter mile or so from the mouth of American Fork Canyon. And. after hanging out in the parking lot until 6:45am we were off!
The biggest difference to the 10K course was the quarter mile or so climb toward the canyon where we then jumped onto the half marathon course. It didn't seem too daunting at first, but wanting to get into nice rhythm with my run/walk method I pushed it a bit. This was a mistake because my quads wanted to remind me right away that we did this running thing last week and it really, really, really sucked. So that was a fun way to start my race.
Once I got to the turn onto the half marathon course KP met up with me (he held back at the start line to use the Honey Buckets) along with most of the elite half marathon runners who were making their way out of the canyon. Even though I was definitely in the back of the 10K it was nice running among a crowd of fast runners. Even if I felt like a Clydesdale crashing a race horse party it was fun to see a number of friends pass by.
As much as I may have been struggling with my zapped legs, I was loving the shade we had thanks to how close we were to Timp and the mountain range. It was really nice. If I had sun in my face early into the race I am sure I would have tanked immediately. But, not today.
It was fun running alongside KP, we just chatted and distracted each other from "the suck" of the miles. We talked about podcasts, Addict II Athlete, dogs, mental health, Disneyland vs. Walt Disney World, mind tricks and a lot more. That's the beauty of running in the back, your topics can range wide and large. You can really get to know someone during a run. Being a people person this is one of my biggest draws to running.
When KP and I got to the last mile that's when the sun started to rise further above the mountains and we found ourselves in the sun. Thankfully, it was during the last mile and we were distracted my the memory mile of signs dedicated to loved ones who lost their battle with cancer. I thought it was a really touching tribute.
Before we knew it KP and I crossed the finish line in just under an hour and forty minutes. Not bad. it was within my expected finish time range so that felt good. I know with some consistent training those times will get faster. Keeping up with my PT has really helped to keep me a good base level of mobility, but I need to up my game now that I'm more settled into my marriage and new place. I'm feeling that itch and will post more within the next week or two.
It was fun hanging out at the finish line with my friends and father-in-law cheering other runners in. I missed these moments during both the pandemic and my recovery. Running is such a life changing sport on so many levels -- physically, mentally, emotionally, socially, etc. It's a beautiful sport that doesn't care about your ability, just your willingness to put one foot in front of the other.
My next race is the Mt. Nebo Half on August 27th which I am excited and motivated about doing. I have a few good loooong runs planned, plus I just became a VASA member so my consistency will get better now that I am less than a quarter of a mile walk from working out. I'll post more about all of that later in the week. But, simply put ... it's go time!