Chattahoochee Challenge

Saturday, Feb. 7th, was the first race of the year for the clan. Part of the clan, at least. I ran the 10k, the kidlets ran the 1-mile Fun Run. (The oldest kid was away for the weekend.)

Complaints:
Had to get out of bed at 5:30.
It was cold.
I didn't get any coffee before the race.
Did I mention the cold?

Anyway. I'd picked up our numbers at Big Peach Running Co., so we were not pressured to get to the Chattahoochee Nature Center too early. Parked at St. Francis, and walked the mile to the start/finish. The boys walked; DD & I alternated walking and skipping, because it annoyed the boys. It was quite fun, and I think it helped keep us warmer than our walking pals.

The fun run started at 7:30. Here's my little runners:

DD - 11:37
B2 - 12:58

Rough times, noted by glancing at clock and trying to see where the munchkins were wandering off to after they crossed the finish line. I'm super proud of them, and will be helping them put together a playlist for the 5k they'll be run/walking with Dad next Saturday.

The 10k was at 8:00. Started in my normal back of the pack position. Hit the first mile in 8:43, then blew the official time by veering off to the park restroom at 1.5 miles. (There were no blue boxes at the start line! They had them for the summer race - where were they this time?) Made up some of my time by only walking through the water stops. The knee went numb & painful all at once at 5 miles, on the only mini-hill of the race. Slowed down to stretch out, then was fine coming back over the same hill in that last half mile.

Official time: 1:01:06

Watch time: 58:53

Got the first win for the 2009 goals - have gone faster than last year's 10k time. Now, let's get officially signed up for Run the Reagan Half Marathon, and see if I can knock out another one next week.

Once again, the race photos taken of me were all at the worst possible moments - while blowing out a breath, scrunching my face & squinting into the sun, etc., but the running kid pics were good, so I'll likely order one or two of my little runners.