I ran the Addison Athletic Booster 5K Saturday. It was a nice, slightly windy day to run in the country.
When the horn went off, I found myself in the middle. I was between the fast and the slower packs with no one close by. I have run this race multiple times and the course is always the same. No mile markers out of the course, so I didn't even look at my watch.
I thought I did well on the hills in the beginning half of the race. The later hills got me. The younger girl that kind of close to me started to really separate from me on one of the last hills. She just kept getting further away from me. The second to last turn, I knew I had runners closing in on me. A volunteer was at the corner and I could hear him tell whoever was behind me 'good job'. I was trying my best to keep them behind me.
The last stretch of road on the course goes from flat to hill. When I was running up the hill, I could hear footsteps behind me. Making the last turn, I heard a female talking right behind me. I knew that I didn't want her to pass me. I started sprinting towards the finish line. I heard her say 'good job' to me as I was running away. I crossed the finish line in 28:38. I placed second in my age group and was the fourth overall woman. The woman behind me ran with her husband and finished about 5-10 seconds after me.
I thought I did enough build up on hills on my weekly runs. I was wrong. I should probably start running hills/incline every week. I want to power up the hills, not get tired on them.
Showing posts with label Addison. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Addison. Show all posts
Monday, May 09, 2016
Monday, July 20, 2015
Panther XC Open 5K
I ran the Panther XC Open 5K Saturday. It was a very warm, sunny and humid morning. The temperature was at 75° before the race even started. It was just going to keep getting warming as the day went on.
This race was run on a high school cross country course. We had a little of everything: grass, dirt, trail, gravel and concrete. Also throw into the mix; a few hills.
I started the race near the front and was the second woman. Parts of the course were changed from last year. The parts that were eliminated were uneven and had holes all over. I was happy that it was changed because I didn't want to twist my ankles, but I always wear ankle braces when running on cross country courses. The grass that we ran over was thick and plush. It made it kind of difficult to pick up your feet. I ran over the grass that was already bent down due to the others ahead of me running on it.
I crossed the first mile in 8:50. I considered that good on a cross country course. It was during the second mile that a few people passed me. After running up a huge hill, a guy passed me. Immediately after the hill was a flat part of the course. I told myself to get going. I knew that there were ladies coming up behind me. Running into the woods, two ladies passed me. I wasn't too happy about that. I wanted to stay with the first lady that passed me, but she just started running away. The second lady that passed me was a 12 year old girl. I was able to stick to her. I ran in a straight line and she kept going from left to right. A few times I thought my legs were going to get tangled with hers. The young girl did a good job of holding me off for a while. She would speed up and create a gap. I would continue on my pace and catch up to her. Then she would speed up again and I would catch her. I finally passed her for good after a couple of times.
With less then a mile to go, I went around a curve and saw a purple shirt behind me. Another lady was chasing me down. Coming out the woods, she passed me on a long grassy straightaway. I wanted to keep up with her, but was unable to. I just knew I needed to keep up a good pace to stay ahead of the young girl I passed in the woods.
Coming out of the woods, we ran on the warning track of the high school baseball field. I loved running on flat gravel surface. No need to look down for fear of tripping over tree roots of rocks. Leaving the baseball field, we ran towards the football field on grass. Passing through a gate and down a hill to the football field, I just couldn't wait to cross the finish line. Coming onto the football field, the time clock read 29 minutes. I didn't realize it was taking me so long. I pushed myself to finish strong and crossed the line in 30:25. I was the fourth overall woman and I was second in my age group. The woman that was first in my age group was the overall winner.
The next two races will be run on cross country courses. They are tough, but I like the challenge of the course.
This race was run on a high school cross country course. We had a little of everything: grass, dirt, trail, gravel and concrete. Also throw into the mix; a few hills.
I started the race near the front and was the second woman. Parts of the course were changed from last year. The parts that were eliminated were uneven and had holes all over. I was happy that it was changed because I didn't want to twist my ankles, but I always wear ankle braces when running on cross country courses. The grass that we ran over was thick and plush. It made it kind of difficult to pick up your feet. I ran over the grass that was already bent down due to the others ahead of me running on it.
I crossed the first mile in 8:50. I considered that good on a cross country course. It was during the second mile that a few people passed me. After running up a huge hill, a guy passed me. Immediately after the hill was a flat part of the course. I told myself to get going. I knew that there were ladies coming up behind me. Running into the woods, two ladies passed me. I wasn't too happy about that. I wanted to stay with the first lady that passed me, but she just started running away. The second lady that passed me was a 12 year old girl. I was able to stick to her. I ran in a straight line and she kept going from left to right. A few times I thought my legs were going to get tangled with hers. The young girl did a good job of holding me off for a while. She would speed up and create a gap. I would continue on my pace and catch up to her. Then she would speed up again and I would catch her. I finally passed her for good after a couple of times.
With less then a mile to go, I went around a curve and saw a purple shirt behind me. Another lady was chasing me down. Coming out the woods, she passed me on a long grassy straightaway. I wanted to keep up with her, but was unable to. I just knew I needed to keep up a good pace to stay ahead of the young girl I passed in the woods.
Coming out of the woods, we ran on the warning track of the high school baseball field. I loved running on flat gravel surface. No need to look down for fear of tripping over tree roots of rocks. Leaving the baseball field, we ran towards the football field on grass. Passing through a gate and down a hill to the football field, I just couldn't wait to cross the finish line. Coming onto the football field, the time clock read 29 minutes. I didn't realize it was taking me so long. I pushed myself to finish strong and crossed the line in 30:25. I was the fourth overall woman and I was second in my age group. The woman that was first in my age group was the overall winner.
The next two races will be run on cross country courses. They are tough, but I like the challenge of the course.
Monday, May 04, 2015
Addison Athletic Boosters 5K
It was a sunny and just a little bit of wind at the start of the race. Not too many people lined up to run the race. That is the best thing about a small town race.
When the horn sounded, I was near the front of the pack. Two guys, a teen boy and girl and two younger girls were part of the pack I ran with. One of the guys was leading the race, followed by the teen boy and girl. I was running next to another guy, but not for long. We made a right hand turn and he charged up the short incline. He got away from me. But I did stay with the teen boy and girl and the two younger girls. Not long after, I caught the youngest of the girls as she needed to stop and walk. Running down a nice hill, I caught up with the other young girl. She needed to tie her shoes. I kept going and thought if I stay where I am, it would be a good day.
The course made another right and the course went from paved road to dirt. The leading guy was getting away. The guy who I started next to, passed the teen boy and girl. As of then I was in fifth place overall. The dirt road has rolling country hills. I decided just to look ahead on the dirt about 10 feet in front of me. I wanted to make sure I didn't twist my ankles on any holes in the road or big stones. I would look up at the teens in front of me and I thought I was getting closer to them. I was behind them just a couple of seconds. Then the teens stop. The girl needed to walk. I passed them and kept going. After passing them, I could hear that they starting running again as they were kicking stones.
I passed the halfway point and the water stop in 13:XX. I kept telling myself keep going and I could finish third overall. The course just went around the country block near the middle school. When passing the halfway mark, we turned right and back on paved roads. As I was running alone, I could hear birds chirping and cows mooing. I could also tell that I passed a hog farm, as they all smell the same. As I would know, I lived on a hog farm for 19 years.
We made another right hand turn onto the road that would lead us back to the middle school. I kept listening for noises behind me. I couldn't hear anything. Then out of nowhere, the teen boy came flying by me. I told him 'good job', but he didn't hear me as he had headphones on. I didn't know if the teen girl was right behind me, so I kept going and didn't look behind me.
Before turning into the middle school parking lot, the road inclines. When I started running up the incline, I just looked about 10 feet in front of me on the road. I didn't want to see how much longer I had to run up the hill. A few spectators and the race winner were standing on the side of the road giving encouragement. I finally made it up the long incline and turned right into the parking lot. I was then able to see the clock and knew I had to run faster. I crossed the line in 27:43. I was fourth overall and the first woman. I looked up last year's time when I got home and saw it was exactly the same as this year's, 27:43. Weird.
My goal since the Glass City Half Marathon is to lose weight. I have lost 3 pounds since then. I need to keep on this path and I know my times will keep dropping.
Monday, July 21, 2014
Panther XC Open 5K
I ran the Panther XC Open 5K Saturday in Addison, MI. It was raining, but also sunny. The rain started off cool. When the race started, the rain turned warm, the temperature went up and it was humid. The course was changed from year's past. The start and finish of the race was moved to the football field. Previously, we started in a grass field outside of the football field. I did like the change. When the school hosts cross country events, people can watch from the stands and have a better view of runners on the course.
I'm trying something new this year. Last year before all races, I would run anywhere from 3-10 miles. This year, I'm not running before races. When the race started, my legs felt dead. It doesn't seem like they would because I'm not running before races. I only ran 6.5 miles on Friday morning. For the first mile, I stayed behind a guy. He ended up pulling away from me when we ran up a large hill. For most of the race, I ran alone.
There were no mile markers on the course, so I didn't even look at my watch. I tried to keep a steady pace. Some of the footing on the course was difficult. Even though there were no markers, what I knew was the second mile, we had to run through a field. There were holes all over. I actually had to slow down. Even though I was wearing ankle braces, I still didn't want to stick my foot in a hole and twist my ankles. In this field, I also caught up to a guy who was walking. I heard him talking after the race. He said that he hadn't run in two months. I ended up passing him. Shortly after the pass, he started running again and passed me. I really wanted to keep up with him, but my legs weren't feeling it.
The course was run on grass, dirt trails and an open field. I'm always slower on cross country courses, but I do like the variety. I finished the race in 30:55. I actually stopped my watch at 30:51. Usually the clock is next to the finish line. This time the end of the chute was the finish line. So I stopped running when I passed the clock. A helper said to keep going because I hadn't reach the line yet. So I just tacked on a few more seconds. After I finished, the workers ended up moving the flags that directed running into the chute. The flag lines were behind the finish line and others didn't make the mistake I did.
I was the fourth overall female and was first in my age group. I did finish this race about two minutes slower then last year. I don't think my experiment of not running before races is helping me. I always feel so sluggish. I will be running another 5K on a cross country course next week. I might have to run some easy miles before the start.
I'm trying something new this year. Last year before all races, I would run anywhere from 3-10 miles. This year, I'm not running before races. When the race started, my legs felt dead. It doesn't seem like they would because I'm not running before races. I only ran 6.5 miles on Friday morning. For the first mile, I stayed behind a guy. He ended up pulling away from me when we ran up a large hill. For most of the race, I ran alone.
There were no mile markers on the course, so I didn't even look at my watch. I tried to keep a steady pace. Some of the footing on the course was difficult. Even though there were no markers, what I knew was the second mile, we had to run through a field. There were holes all over. I actually had to slow down. Even though I was wearing ankle braces, I still didn't want to stick my foot in a hole and twist my ankles. In this field, I also caught up to a guy who was walking. I heard him talking after the race. He said that he hadn't run in two months. I ended up passing him. Shortly after the pass, he started running again and passed me. I really wanted to keep up with him, but my legs weren't feeling it.
The course was run on grass, dirt trails and an open field. I'm always slower on cross country courses, but I do like the variety. I finished the race in 30:55. I actually stopped my watch at 30:51. Usually the clock is next to the finish line. This time the end of the chute was the finish line. So I stopped running when I passed the clock. A helper said to keep going because I hadn't reach the line yet. So I just tacked on a few more seconds. After I finished, the workers ended up moving the flags that directed running into the chute. The flag lines were behind the finish line and others didn't make the mistake I did.
I was the fourth overall female and was first in my age group. I did finish this race about two minutes slower then last year. I don't think my experiment of not running before races is helping me. I always feel so sluggish. I will be running another 5K on a cross country course next week. I might have to run some easy miles before the start.
Monday, May 05, 2014
Addison Athletic Boosters 5K
The course is a big country block that starts and ends at Addison Middle School. The country block features a few hills. The start of the race was in the high 40s and windy. The winds were at 16 m.p.h. with gusts up to 25 m.p.h.
When the horn went off, I found myself in a clump of guys. We went down a huge hill and up another another hill together. Slowly, one of the guys started to break away. I was able to hang on to the other guy through 1.5 to 2 miles. I'm not really sure of the distance because no mile markers were indicted on the roads.
I thought I did well on the hills. It felt like I was charging up them. Not sure if I actually was. The wind was blowing into our faces on the second half of the course.
Also on the second half of the course, I passed a boy and girl that started out too quickly that were walking. I passed them, but I heard them talking behind me. A couple of moments later, they pass me running pretty fast. They started to build a nice lead on me, but then they would tire out start walking again. I ended up catching and passing them again. This happened one more time. I thought that the kids would have another run in them over the final stretch. I passed them once and for all heading up a long incline of a hill. I put my head down and tried working on turnover. I just wanted to climb the hill as fast as I could and make the turn to head to the finish line. Once I was up the hill, I went as fast as I could to the finish line.
I finished the race in 27:43. I was the 7th overall female and 1st in my age group. This is the second year in a row that I won my age group at this race. My finishing time is about a minute slower then last year's race, but I have improved my 5K times since the beginning of the year. My first 5K of the year was 31 minutes, my second was 29 minutes and Saturday's was 27 minutes. I'm running another 5K this weekend, I hope my time drops again.
Monday, August 05, 2013
Addison XC 5K
It was a nice day to run a cross country race Saturday. I ran the Addison XC 5K. This race was run on the high school's cross country course. It is a mixture of grass, dirt and trails. The weather was perfect and a heavy fog was burning off before the race started.
The first mile had a couple of steep hills. We mostly ran up the hills. But we did have one to run down. Besides the hills, some of the footing wasn't the greatest. On cross country courses I always wear my ankle braces. I had to slow down in a couple of spots because I thought I was going to twist an ankle. There were so many holes and low spots all over. When running on grass, it makes it hard to anything.
I was able to chase down the second overall female during the second mile. After running the first mile by myself I thought that I wouldn't have a chance to catch her. I kept running at a solid pace and I started to catch up with her.
I was able to pull up beside her and pass her with about 400 meters to go. She stayed behind me for a couple of steps and then she pulled out from behind me and passed. I was hoping to hang on to her. Leading up to the last straighaway to the finish was a steep hill we had to run down. I wanted to be careful and slowed down. When I did that, I lost some distance on her. I tried my best to get her, but she got away. I did finish up the race with a nice final sprint.
I finished the tough XC race in 29:28. I was the third overall woman and placed first in my age group.
Tuesday, May 07, 2013
Addison Athletic Boosters 5K Run
I ran the Addison Athletic Boosters 5K run Saturday. The weather was around 60° and there was a 10 mph wind.
When the starter yelled 'Go', I found myself near the front. I was behind a ton of guys and two females. The lead female was running with the the lead guys, so there was no way I was going to catch her. But I knew I could catch the other female in front of me. I could tell she started out too quickly because she stopped to walk before we even reached half mile. As soon as I would catch her, she would start running again.
Further down the road, she had to stop and walk again . This time I knew I would catch her because the course was leading us up a big hill. I passed the girl as she was walking up the hill and I was running. Once I was over the hill, I settled into a pace that I knew I could keep running.
The course lead us on a dirt road and I picked a path that didn't have too many pot holes. At this point, I actually caught two guys. I was happy that I was actually running with someone. I could hear someone coming up behind me on my left. When they were next to me, I noticed it was a female. She passed me and soon after another female passed me on my right. The first female to pass me was running a fast pace and she kept getting further away. For a while I was keeping up with the second female that passed me. I was following behind her and the two guys. I was able to drop one of the guys and I was still pursuing the other man and lady. I started to lose them as the course took us up another hill. This hill had a long incline heading into it. At the bottom of the hill, I was hoping to catch them at the water stop.
I didn't plan on stopping for water, but I wasn't sure if they were. The lady ran by, but the guy reached out for a glass. He missed it on the first reach, so he reached back again and grabbed it. That wasn't the long pause I was hoping for. When I reached the water stop, the guy and lady already were running away. The course made a turn and we were back on asphalt. We were also running into some headwind.
I put my head down and kept running. When I would look up, I could see that the distance was getting bigger between us. I knew they were out of reach so I needed to keep running to make sure no one else would pass me. Making a right hand turn onto the final stretch of the race, the volunteers on the corner said a few words of encouragement. I didn't turn around to see where the next running was, there was no need to. I just listened for the volunteer. A few seconds after saying something to me, she said 'good job' to the person behind me. The gap was close. With less then a mile to go, I kept using my arms to help me keep going. I also took the shortest path around the curves to not waste any time.
Before the end of the race, the course takes us up a long hill. I put my head down and looked about 10 feet in front of me. Looking down at the pavement always seems to make the hill go by faster. I'm sure I wasn't running too fast, but I kept my arms and legs moving. Rounding a curve to the final straightaway, I picked up my pace and headed to the finish line. I crossed in 26:22.8. I was the 18th overall finisher, 4th overall woman and was first in my age group.
This was the second time I have run this race. The first time was in 2011 and my finishing time was 26:23.8. I was the 5th overall woman and placed first in my age group. I was a second faster this time around and I placed one spot higher in the women's overall standards. It isn't a huge improvement, but it is still better. That makes me happy.
When the starter yelled 'Go', I found myself near the front. I was behind a ton of guys and two females. The lead female was running with the the lead guys, so there was no way I was going to catch her. But I knew I could catch the other female in front of me. I could tell she started out too quickly because she stopped to walk before we even reached half mile. As soon as I would catch her, she would start running again.
Further down the road, she had to stop and walk again . This time I knew I would catch her because the course was leading us up a big hill. I passed the girl as she was walking up the hill and I was running. Once I was over the hill, I settled into a pace that I knew I could keep running.
The course lead us on a dirt road and I picked a path that didn't have too many pot holes. At this point, I actually caught two guys. I was happy that I was actually running with someone. I could hear someone coming up behind me on my left. When they were next to me, I noticed it was a female. She passed me and soon after another female passed me on my right. The first female to pass me was running a fast pace and she kept getting further away. For a while I was keeping up with the second female that passed me. I was following behind her and the two guys. I was able to drop one of the guys and I was still pursuing the other man and lady. I started to lose them as the course took us up another hill. This hill had a long incline heading into it. At the bottom of the hill, I was hoping to catch them at the water stop.
I didn't plan on stopping for water, but I wasn't sure if they were. The lady ran by, but the guy reached out for a glass. He missed it on the first reach, so he reached back again and grabbed it. That wasn't the long pause I was hoping for. When I reached the water stop, the guy and lady already were running away. The course made a turn and we were back on asphalt. We were also running into some headwind.
I put my head down and kept running. When I would look up, I could see that the distance was getting bigger between us. I knew they were out of reach so I needed to keep running to make sure no one else would pass me. Making a right hand turn onto the final stretch of the race, the volunteers on the corner said a few words of encouragement. I didn't turn around to see where the next running was, there was no need to. I just listened for the volunteer. A few seconds after saying something to me, she said 'good job' to the person behind me. The gap was close. With less then a mile to go, I kept using my arms to help me keep going. I also took the shortest path around the curves to not waste any time.
Before the end of the race, the course takes us up a long hill. I put my head down and looked about 10 feet in front of me. Looking down at the pavement always seems to make the hill go by faster. I'm sure I wasn't running too fast, but I kept my arms and legs moving. Rounding a curve to the final straightaway, I picked up my pace and headed to the finish line. I crossed in 26:22.8. I was the 18th overall finisher, 4th overall woman and was first in my age group.
This was the second time I have run this race. The first time was in 2011 and my finishing time was 26:23.8. I was the 5th overall woman and placed first in my age group. I was a second faster this time around and I placed one spot higher in the women's overall standards. It isn't a huge improvement, but it is still better. That makes me happy.
Monday, February 04, 2013
Monday, January 28, 2013
Monday, October 08, 2012
Monday, September 17, 2012
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