Arbor Day 10K: Race Report

Arbor Day 10K this morning.  Race started at 8:30 am.  It was 37 degrees, and there was frost on the ground.  It almost felt like being back at WDW in January...at least it wasn't snowing/sleeting (fortunately it was sunny and only slightly breezy)!

I had already picked up my packet at Whole Foods earlier in the week, and ran this one by myself, so I got there about 8, and prepped myself in the warm car, then quickly walked to the start.  There were real restrooms by the amphitheatre, so I made a quick bathroom stop and was good to go.

Between the cold and the kids (including one who almost tripped me by cutting me off right as I crossed the chip reader), I had a slow start.  I was so bumfuzzled, I actually forgot to start my Garmin until over 0.1 miles in!  Oh well...

The race was a Fun Walk/5K/10K, and very family-friendly, so the road and trail were fairly congested through the first mile or so until people naturally spread out based on pace.  Then, after the 5K turnaround, it was just me and a few other slowpokes...  Around mile 2.5, we started seeing the fast 10K-ers who had already turned around and were headed towards the finish - definitely made me want to kick it up a notch!

I finished all by myself, with no one in front or behind me as far as I could see (although there were plenty of bends and turns, so I couldn't see more than a couple tenths of a mile ahead of me for approximately the last two miles or so).  But there were tons of volunteers on the course who were really upbeat and excited, despite the cold!  Plus it was a great course - I really enjoyed running through the Oak Pointe Nature Preserve - we'll have to add that to our library of trails, especially once we get into the truly long runs.

The after-party was really fun, with a live band, award presentations, and a tree planting ceremony.  There were also tons of  post-race goodies provided by the sponsors, including: beer, coffee, fruit, muffins, Muscle Milk, Wheaties, tea, Cliff Bars, etc...  Good thing the Muscle Milk booth was also giving out bags, otherwise there's no way any of us would've been able to carry all that stuff!

All in all, a really good run!  Race stats:

• Official time: 6.2 miles; 1:22:35; 13:19 min/mi
• Arbor Day 10K Garmin Results (not completely accurate b/c of snafu @ start)