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August 11, 2007

oswego harborfest 10K

I've been lazy in posting race reports this summer, probably since we've run so many. I completely skipped blogging the Swamp Rat in June, which was momentous in that my near-60-year-old mother ran it with my sister--a first for both of them.

And I'm about 2 weeks overdue in posting about Oswego's Harborfest 10K, but it was such a great day that I'll write a little anyway.

After a bit of drama in trying to pick up our packets a few days early (D trekked to the Oswego YMCA the Thursday before, as we were instructed to do so in the paperwork, and was laughed at when she asked to pick up our packets--they were experiencing a bit of technical difficulty, it seems, in putting together the race packets), we figured we would simply arrived early and hope that the race people had everything together by race morning. We worried a bit that we would not receive shirts, as the race info said that only the first 250 runners registered would get shirts. But lucky we were, and we were happy to find our packets did indeed have pleasant colorful shirts. Much to our chagrin, though, the ads on the back included one for Hell*Mart (or Wal*Hell, if you prefer).

The race did not have chip timing, a first for us. We weren't sure how that would affect the start--would runners be super rude, pushing to the front since there would be no "net time" to offset the time-lag often mid- and back--of-the-pack runners experience? We were also worried that since D saw a big sign at the Y earlier in the week that pleaded for more volunteers for the race that the water stations would be understaffed, or worse, non-existant.

The weather was perfect: overcast. And the course, which was described as "undulating," was darn right mountainous.

But something strange is happening to me. When I run a race these days, my old easy-going, "I'm just here for the bagels at the end" attitude is replaced with a "I wonder how fast I can go today?" and a "I wonder which of these runners I can beat?"

So when the horn went off, I took off. And the hills were bad, but none as bad as the infamous St. Albert's hill in Council Bluffs which I spent the first week of July running. And the water stops were plentiful, the course well-marked for the most part, and I ran hard. And according to D, whose Google skillz now rival my own when it comes to tracking down race results, I ran a...dang. Now I can't find it. It was a 56 I think, 56:58, something like that.

I was fast as, as D would say, sheeee-it. Although, D was much faster than me, but I don't know her time, either. Under 50, I'm sure, as that was her goal and she frequently PRs.

And the great J, who ran the 5K, also PRed on the hilly course. And I would have taken an "after" pic, but my dumb camera battery died. Or I had it in backwards. Or something.

Posted by mryonker at August 11, 2007 01:12 PM

Comments

Posted by: tyratae at August 12, 2007 10:56 AM