St. Patrick's Day 8K

My second race of the month was the St. Patrick's Day 8K on Sunday, March 14, 2010. Mark and I ran it together and I'm so glad we did.

The packet pick up was all the way out in Falls Church and I wasn't so keen on going out there. But it turned out to be great. The running store was fantastic (once we found a parking spot)...and anything green was 20% off. Mark and I stocked up.

The race started at 9 am at Freedom's Plaza. It was a perfect running morning---cloudy and 50 degrees.

The race was a good course---and a different one than we're used to running.

Along the way we also saw our friend Sue!!! :) We saw her twice as the course double backed on itself. Go Sue! :)

We finished in just under 45 minutes--and together! :)

Race #4 completed!

Results:

Bib

FName

LName

City

State

Div

Age

Sex

ChipTime

ClockTime

Overall

SexPl

DivPl

AgeGrade

Pace

726

AMY

TRENKLE

WASHINGTON

DC

F3034

34

F

44:57

46:41

1563

543

111

53.9%

Bib

FName

LName

City

State

Div

Age

Sex

ChipTime

ClockTime

Overall

SexPl

DivPl

AgeGrade

Pace

5515

MARK

HANNUM

WASHINGTON

DC

M3034

34

M

44:57

46:41

1562

1019

202

47.9%

B&A Half Marathon

The weather finally cooperated on Sunday, March 7, for me to participate in my 3rd race of 2010! It was the B&A Half Marathon--B&A is short for Baltimore and Annapolis.


One of the coolest parts was that it literally started about two miles from my parents' house. So, not only did I have nice weather, I got to spend time with my parents! Mom made a fantastic dinner the night before--a mushroom pate, iceberg lettuce wedge, caramelized onion and red pepper pierogies, and a fresh berry crisp.

This great proximity also lent itself to wonderful spectator participation! Mom, Dad, Mark and Soba were AMAZING! I think I saw them roughly eight times along the course! I told them that I was going to start racing them and see who go to the next viewing spot first! :) It was so much fun to see them along the way!







The race was pretty flat and ran on the bike trail. It was nice to be in the sun and to be warm, but not hot.



I think my only regret is that I didn't have my iPod. The rules said that any listening devices were strictly prohibited since it was on a trail. Sometimes race directors mean this and other times they don't. During my race in January, I took my iPod and within the first mile was told by another runner that they were serious about the rule and that I should remove the headphones. With that trail experience behind me I decided to heed the warning and I did not take my tunes with me. I think if I had I would have felt a little faster. If I run this race again I will definitely take music with me.



Overall I was happy with the race and with my performance. I finished in just under two hours. Even though the clock in the picture below says 1:59:15, it took me a full minute to cross the start line so my real time was 1:58:04, with an average of 9:01 per mile. I was 292nd over all out of 601 finishers (men and women) and 14th in my age group out of 41. :)


It was a really nice morning and I appreciated so much seeing Mom, Dad and Mark along the trail! Thanks! :) There's nothing like having your own personal cheering section on the trail!



Thanks to Mark and Dad for taking the photos that are on this blog!