The weather was cold and rainy for the 5K, but that didn't stop 178 runners/walkers from showing up. It was great to complete the race with the family. Erik ran his best 5K time. Mom had her best 5K time. Anna walked with my dad, and she actually had her best time also. I placed 3rd in my age group, which was nice even though they only gave out an award for first. Mom was 2nd in her age group (but her age group was 50 and up, and she was the only woman in her 60's to place in the top 5 of that age group)! The course was fairly hilly, but I don't mind hills as much as I used to. I think the course was actually a little short, because they had us walk up the hill at the start to be able to start going down hill first, which I think actually shortened the course just a bit. According to my Garmin, the course was actually 2.95 miles and I ran it in 26:10 with an avg. pace of 8:52. The official finish time has me at 26:06 for a 5K distance with an avg. pace of 8:24. Either way, I ran the race maintaining a pace in the 8's, which was my goal and I'm pleased with it!
The St. Patty's Day 7K started on the chilly side, and the temp actually got colder as the day went on. The wind also began to pick up a bit at the end. It was a crowded start through the streets of downtown Cottleville. I lined up at the 9 min/mile pace mark, but it was very clear that there were many people ahead of us that did not line up in their proper pace. The first mile was a slow start, but I was able to pick it up a little and end up with a 9:30 for the first mile. Once we got to the long hill, I was able to final pass a lot of the slower paced runners and get into more of a groove. I ended up finishing in 39:46, with an average pace of 9:08. This was better than last year, so I'll take it. We didn't stay for the parade as we were cold and wanted to get home for some down time before our girls night out later in the night. We did have fun dressing up in our St. Patty's day finest!
