Zoo Run 10k

The weekend before the Zoo Run I got sick with a virus I caught from Elise. Then I ended up with an infected cyst which I had to go on antibiotics for and get drained on Thursday. So I had incisions in my back and wasn't feeling great. My run on Friday was pretty rough so I went into the race on Saturday with a healthy dose of low expectations. I told Ty the race was either going to go terribly or I was going to be pleasantly surprised. Originally I hoped to run somewhere in the 43-45 minute range, but I adjusted my mindset to being happy with even 46 minutes, although I was hopeful I could still average 7:15 pace. Mom and dad came for the race because Elise had a friend who wanted to do the 5k with me and Elise. I wanted to run the 10k so I asked dad if he would mind being Elise and her friend's escort. He was happy to so Mom signed him up and then signed Carter and herself up for the Fun Run. Ty just went along for the ride. 

The night before the race as we were looking at the flyer we got at packet pickup, I noticed it said the west entrance to the zoo was closed. We usually go that way instead of through the front entrance. We knew it would take longer to get into the zoo with just one entrance, so we decided to leave closer to 7am than 7:15 like we usually do. I got up at 6:30 so I could do yoga and was ready before 7:00. Dad got up a bit later so we ended up leaving at 7:07. I drank coffee and ate an almond butter biscuit in the car on the way there. The Fun Run was at 8:00, the 10k was at 8:30, and the 5k was at 8:45. The lines were much longer than usual, but we got into the zoo with about 7 minutes to park and get to the fun run start inside the zoo. Ty called Elise's friend's mom while we were waiting for the fun run to start and she said they were still sitting in line on Sheridan, trying to get into the zoo. I figured 20 minutes was enough time to get into the zoo and get parked. They close the gate to the parking lot at 8:20 so it is clear for runners since the 5k and 10k run mostly on the grounds outside the zoo. It ended up not being enough time. Not only was the west entrance closed, but this was the largest the race has ever been. After I finished I saw messages in my homeroom parent group thread about everyone stuck in traffic, not able to get into the zoo. People were parking along the road outside the zoo and walking a mile or more in to get to the race start. It was crazy! I didn't know any of this as I ran a 2 mile warm up with some strides and took a restroom break before heading to the start line. It was a little chilly when we first got there at 48 degrees, but warmed up fast. I found dad and Elise and handed off my sweatshirt and then went to the start line. I wore shorts, my racing tank, and a headband.

The race had the weirdest start I've ever experienced. A lady counted down from 10 and that was it. Everyone was expecting a gun or for someone to say go so the people at the front just stood there. Then someone yelled go when they realized no one had taken off and we started running. I felt great from the get go, very fluid and strong. The first mile does not a race make, but I was pleased to feel as good as I did. I moved into first female within the first straight away and counted that I was 12th overall. I decided my goal was to work my way up to top 10 overall. I went through the first mile in 6:59 and had worked my way up to 9th overall. That was a lot faster than I was expecting, but I told myself to just keep my head up and my eyes forward and to continue focusing on running based on feel. Right after the mile mark I was passed by 2 guys running together who must have started further back in the race. Pretty shortly after they passed me, one of them started walking, but the other looked really strong and I stayed pretty close behind him for the rest of the race. I went through mile 2 in 7:07. I was pleased with that and was still feeling great. 

When we came out of the back section back onto the main zoo road, I was confused to be running through people walking. I knew the 5k wouldn't go through that section of the course. I heard my friend Shay cheer for me and that's when I realized these were the people who weren't able to get into the parking lot before the gates were closed and they were walking from outside the zoo to the start line. There were enough of them, that I thought it was the back of the 5k pack. It was crazy! There were also cars driving back out of the zoo which I've never had happen before. So I was weaving through people walking to the 5k start as cars were driving the opposite way. Then there was a lady who had fallen on the bridge and there was a large group of people around her, helping her. It was sheer chaos and it only got worse from there. Once I made it through the people walking to the 5k start, we ran into the people walking the 5k. For the remainder of the race, I was weaving through people in the 5k. I went through mile 3 in 7:06 and missed seeing what my 5k split was because I was weaving through so many people, it wasn't safe to look down. I passed a guy ahead of me in the 10k during this portion of the race and I kept my eyes on the guy I'd been running with the whole way. There were 5k walkers taking up the entire road so there were sections where I'd have to go out onto the grass on a slant to pass. We'd had a lot of rain during the week leading up to the race so it was muddy and I would slip around.

At one point a lady in the 5k who saw us weaving around started yelling, "10k runners coming through," so people would move over for us. A different lady yelled back at her, "This isn't a professional race, calm down." That was the only point in the race when I got irritated with the situation. Yes, it was not a professional race, but I had trained hard to hopefully run a good time and I deserved just as much as they did to be in the race and I deserved to take up space on those roads as well. It's not hard to move over for others, especially when you are walking. That comment rubbed me the wrong way and showed just how entitled some people can be. We all deserved space out on those roads and her walking a race shouldn't interfere with people running who trained hard to run fast and deserved to run the times they were capable of running. That being said, I didn't mind weaving through people because it kept the race interesting and I never once had the chance to look down at my watch to see where I was in distance or what my pace was. I was too busy looking for gaps to run through. I do know it effected my time and I could have run faster, had I not been weaving around, but I also know it wouldn't have been a huge difference in my time. I went through mile 4 in 7:09. I felt really strong and told myself to keep all my miles under 7:10. 

Once we made it through the walkers, it got even trickier as we started running through run/walkers. There were kids who were run/walking and they'd run and then suddenly just stop right in front of me or go to weave through like I was and cut me off. I was really wishing I had a lead vehicle like I did a couple years ago. I went through mile 5 in 7:03 which I was pretty shocked by. I was really impressed I was able to run that fast through the crowds. As we entered the zoo I encountered my first racers pushing strollers and there was even a woman pushing a double stroller. A lady pushing a stroller went to pass right as I was running past and she bumped into me with her stroller. It was just so congested. The road narrowed going into the zoo and there were a lot of puddles. I told myself it was go time and kept my eyes on the guy in the 10k ahead of me. We were staying very steady with him holding a slight lead on me. It was finally getting a bit easier to pass as the 5k runners were spread out a little bit more. At some point running through the zoo I heard dad cheer for me and then Elise did right after that. I gave them a thumbs up. 

I forgot there was an out and back section which I'd noticed on the course map and that made the already too small road, split in 2 with runners coming back toward the finish on the opposite side. I stayed to the left so I could keep passing the 5k runners. The nice thing about the out and back was I got to see dad and Elise after I turned around. I gave them each a high five. It was a slight incline on the way out so when I turned around and had a slight downhill, I told myself it was go time. I ran mile 6 in 7:03 again. I started to slowly close the gap on the guy ahead of me. Once we could see the finish line, some of the 5k runners would try to go with me as I sprinted by them which made the finish a bit more fun, but I was also still weaving through runners which made it hard to sprint as hard as I would have liked. When I finished I thought I stopped my watch, but I just pushed the lap button. When I looked down and stopped my watch, it read 44:02. I was pretty excited about that and figured my official time was probably under 44 minutes. It was at 43:48. Since I hit the lap button I have my pace for the last 0.2 of the race which I finished in 6:34 pace. I realized I hadn't stopped my watch 15 seconds later so that's how long the last lap was on my watch. I averaged 7:04 pace for the 10k! I was really, really happy with that! I really didn't think I'd be under 45 minutes so I was especially happy with sub-44! I finished 9th out of 253 overall and 1st female.

I found Ty and mom right after I finished and stayed to cheer Elise and dad on as they finished. They finished in 33:42. Elise was 415th out of 1,420 overall and 22nd out of 75 in her age group. Dad was 4th of 23 in his age group! We went to the finisher's area to get all the freebies and waited around a little bit for awards. We couldn't hear anything, so I missed the overall awards, but was able to go get it afterward and I got a gift card to McNellie's. We enjoyed walking around the zoo for a while after the race and then stopped at Waffle House for lunch before heading home. I told mom I should probably just start running the 5k at this race since the 10k is such a cluster trying to weave through all the 5k runners, but there aren't very many races that offer a 10k and I really enjoy the distance. We'll see what I decide to do next year. This definitely isn't a good race to go for a PR anymore. I set my PR at this race back in 2016 when the 5k used to start before the 10k. I think that's why the 10k has gotten so much smaller over the years, people don't want to deal with weaving through all the 5k runners since they moved the 10k to start before the 5k.

Talking to Ty after finishing the race.

Dad and Elise finishing the 5k.

Running buddies!

Read about past Zoo Runs Here:

2013- 5k in 21:23

2014- 5k in 23:11

2015- 5k in 21:55

2016- 10k in 41:49

2017- 10k in 44:57

2019- 10k in 42:56

2023- 10k in 43:31

2025- 10k in 44:56

2026- 10k in 43:48

Zoo Run 10k

After my 9 mile tempo run at 7:07 pace I was really excited about the Zoo Run 10k coming up that next weekend. I felt like I was getting into really good shape and was excited to see if I could beat my postpartum PR of 42:30 from the Aquarium Run 10k. I decided to bump my speedwork up to Tuesday morning to give myself Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday easy before the race so I would be pretty fresh for the race. My running friend, Sara, had posted about a speed workout she does a while back and I decided to give it a go. The workout consisted of 2 miles hard, 1 mile recovery, 1.5 miles hard, 0.75 recovery, 1 mile hard, 0.5 mile recovery, and then 0.5 mile hard. I had never run the workout before but figured I'd shoot for 6:45 miles and go from there. I had only taken one easy recovery day after my 9 mile tempo so I knew there was a chance the run would be a struggle. I took off and felt great from the start running 6:47 and 6:41 for the first 2 miles. Then followed that up with a 6:32 mile of my 1.5 mile repeat, a 6:31 for my mile repeat, and my half mile repeat in 3:07. After the workout I felt confident I would be able to run really well at the race on Saturday. I kept thinking 6:45 was a reasonable goal for me in a 10k but then I kept thinking back to the Corndog Challenge 5k. I had averaged 6:45 pace in the race. It hadn't felt hard but it hadn't felt easy either, like I could have gone another 5k at that pace. The doubt would start to set in, but I just kept telling myself to go out and run as hard as I could. If I was able to run that pace great, if not I'd do my best.

The kids posing in the rain forest area after the race.

Jeremy, Thomas, mom, and dad were all signed up for the 5k while Ty and I were signed up for the 10k. The 5k started 30 minutes before the 10k so we knew Jeremy, Thomas, and dad would all finish before our race started but the finish was inside the zoo while the start was out in front of the parking lot. We weren't sure we'd be able to pass off the kids in time to make it for our race start so Thomas decided to go ahead and run with the kids in the double stroller as originally planned. We were standing way at the back with him talking when we heard the gun go off for the start. We had been expecting to hear some sort of warning or commands so Thomas was still in his sweats and hadn't tied his shoes. He quickly stripped down and took off. As he ran by someone said, "Wow, he's going all out with the double stroller." I told them, "Yeah, and those aren't even his kids!" Ty and I headed to the restrooms together and then I ran a mile warm up. I was feeling good and really confident that I would have a good race. As we lined up at the start line I saw a woman I recognized from multiple different races. She and I ran part of the Sweetheart Run 10k together before she took off in the second half to win. She took off faster than I did and then I caught up to her. I decided to stick with her and run together but the pace felt a little slow. I looked down to see we were running 7:00 pace so I decided to take off on my own and run what felt right. I went through the first mile in 6:39 which was a touch faster than I expected but I didn't worry about it. I just stayed in my rhythm and ran what felt like a strong pace for me. Right as my watch beeped for the 2nd mile which I ran in 6:45, the woman I had planned to run with passed me and I decided to go with her. I kept telling myself to hold steady until the second half of the race and then I could pick up the pace. We went through the 3rd mile together in 6:42 and then I started to pick up the pace going into the final 5k. I was feeling really strong and got excited knowing I was already 21 seconds under the pace from my postpartum PR at the Aquarium Run which I ran in 6:49 pace.

I must have gotten a little bit too excited about being in the second half of the race and went through mile 4 in 6:33. Going into the last two miles I was starting to feel it in my legs. They were getting tired and I was working a lot harder. I haven't run very many 10ks so I'm still figuring things out pace-wise. I feel like it makes it harder when I haven't done any 6 mile tempos going into the race because I'm not quite sure what pace I am capable of. I went through mile 5 in 6:42 and was starting to catch up to a couple of men in front of me. I passed them going into the last mile as we headed toward the zoo. Up until that point the race had been extremely flat. As we headed into the zoo there were a few very mild hills, nothing too difficult. I had barely noticed them in the previous years when I'd run the 5k, but I noticed them this year! My legs were burning as I went up each one and I was trying to speed up to make my last mile the fastest but I knew I was going to be doing good if I could just hold on. It makes such a big difference going up hills after hammering away 5 miles vs. 2 miles, that's for sure! As I made the turn toward the finish line I was so excited to be nearly done then we turned one last time and I almost took a cheerleader out because I hadn't been able to see them until I turned the corner. They had cheerleaders from a local high school lining both sides of the finish line cheering us on. I looked up at the clock to see I was going to finish just under 42 minutes and gave it every last bit I had left. As I stopped my Garmin (actually Ty's Garmin since mine stopped working a few months ago) it showed I had run my fastest 5k of 20:35. That would put me running the second half of my 10k just 6 seconds slower than my fastest 5k from last year, a 20:29 at the Race into the New Year 5k, which got me excited to run a 5k in a few weeks and see what I can do! I grabbed a water and took off on my cool down so I could make it back to the finish in time to see Ty finish. When I got back I grabbed a Powerade and saw my mom and Thomas with Elise. We stood waiting for Ty to finish and I started getting really cold. My head started to feel funny and I remembered after our half-marathon last November I realized I had gotten a migraine due to standing sweaty and freezing in the cold for so long after the race. I figured I'd miss Ty finish, but I didn't want to get a migraine so I took off to get my change of clothes out of the stroller and warm up.

We stayed over in the awards area for a while so Carter could jump on the inflatables they had for kids. It was fun to hear how everyone's races went. Jeremy was 3 seconds away from placing in his age group with a time of 23:22. He was 4th out of 49 in his age group and 54th out of 1,050 total finishers. As we were walking around the zoo later I asked him if his form feels different or off since his accident. He said it feels different every single time he runs and each day it gets a little bit better. It is amazing what he has already accomplished and I get excited thinking about what is still to come! Dad was 61st out of 1,050 overall and 5th out of 20 in his age group with a time of 23:56. He was able to see Jeremy for much of the race and was amazed at how well he ran. After the race he described Jeremy as a freak of nature and I would have to agree. I can't believe he ran a 5k in just over 7:30 pace so soon after his accident. Thomas rocked it pushing the double stroller. He crossed the starting line as the announcer was saying, "Last call for the 5k. If you are running the 5k you must start now." He spent most of the race running in the grass on the outside of the path to pass people. When I was putting the stroller in the trunk I was amazed at the amount of grass that was underneath the stroller in the area where we store things. I've never gotten grass in the stroller there before! That just goes to show how much off roading he was doing! He finished 101st overall and 6th out of 33 in his age group with a time of 25:58. Quite impressive for running with the double stroller through grass most of the way! Mom improved her time even more, finishing in 35:19 which put her 441st overall and 3rd out of 35 in her age group. My new 10k PR of 41:49 put me 15th out of 459 overall, 2nd out of 267 women, and 1st out of 52 in my age group. Ty also ran a 10k PR of 1:02:11, good for 249th overall and 12th out of 17 in his age group. After awards we headed out to look at animals at the zoo before heading home. I always love running my cool down inside the zoo while looking at animals and then walking around the zoo afterward with my family. This race is always so much fun and I look forward to it every year. This year was even better as I ran not just a postpartum PR but an overall PR in the 10k. That may be because I haven't run very many 10ks in the past, but I'm taking it anyway! Read about our first year running the race here, read about 2014's race here in my 14 week bumpdate, and last year's run here.

Resting for a bit at the zoo.

Walking around the zoo after the race.

2016 Running Review

My friend Sara wrote a review post on her running in 2016. When I read her post, you can read it here, I got excited to do something similar myself. I loved the excuse to look back over the year and see how far I have come from 2015! The year 2016 was my most exciting year of running since I graduated college and ran my last cross country race. I have run times I didn't think were possible for me anymore and I have a strong desire to continue improving and to make 2017 an even better and more PR filled year than 2016! I have Sara to thank for making me realize being a om and being in my 30's doesn't mean that my fastest times have to be behind me. I am so excited about that! I had a few runs in 2016 where I ran with my phone instead of my Garmin or my Garmin died part-way through a run but I still want to include my year's information from Garmin Connect:

Total Miles Run: 1,332.6
Total Time Spent Running: 191 hours, 33 minutes, and 32 seconds
Feet of Elevation Gained: 21,529
Average Running Speed: 7 mph or 8:34 minute per mile pace.

The Year's Stats:
Number of 5ks Run: 15
Number of 10ks Run: 4
Number of 15ks Run: 1 (First time at that distance!)
Number of Half Marathons Run: 1

Times Under 22 Minutes in the 5k: 15
Times Under 21 Minutes in the 5k: 9
Times Under 20 Minutes in the 5k: 3

Number of Races Where I Ate While Running: 1 (This was a first for me!)
Number of Races Where I Drank Alcohol While Running: 1 (This was a first for me!)
Number of Trail Races: 1 (This was a first for me!)
Number of Postpartum PRs: 4 (5k, 10k, 15k, and half-marathon)
Number of All-Time PRs: 2 (10k and 15k)
Number of Races Run While Pregnant: 0!!!! (Thank goodness!)

Weeks With 20-29 Miles: 24
Weeks With 30-39 Miles: 11
Weeks With 40-49 Miles: 7
Weeks With 50 Miles: 2
This shows most of my weeks were at least 20 miles. It also shows that I can definitely up the ante and run more miles per week to get faster and stronger!

For comparison, 2015 Stats:
Number of 5ks Run: 13
Number of 10ks Run: 0
Number of 15ks Run: 0
Number of Half Marathons Run: 2

Times Under 22 Minutes in the 5k: 5
Times Under 21 Minutes in the 5k: 2
Times Under 20 Minutes in the 5k: 0


Number of All-Time PRs: 0
Number of Races Run While Pregnant: 3

Weeks With 20-29 Miles: 13
Weeks With 30-39 Miles: 0
Weeks With 40-49 Miles: 0
Weeks With 50 Miles: 0
This shows the majority of my weeks were less than 20 miles. Coming back after pregnancy and childbirth can be tough!

It's cool to see that in 2015 I was trying to break 21 minutes in the 5k and I was able to do that 9 times over the course of 2016. I am so proud of my all-time PRs in the 10k and 15k (although it was the first 15k I've ever run) and only missing out on an all-time PR in the half-marathon by 14 seconds! Here are my 2016 races broken down by month. I think the biggest thing I learned this year was not to overbook myself with races no matter how much fun they sound or how desperate I am at a PR attempt! I've included my average pace for the race because some races were short and others were long, that way there's a bit of comparison.

January
Dec. 31st/Jan. 1st- Race Into the New Year 5k in 20:29 (6:31 pace), 1st overall female
9th- Runway Run 5k in 21:21 (6:47 pace), 2nd overall female

Carter ready for the Runway Run.

February
13th- Sweetheart Run 10k in 43:11 (6:53 pace), 2nd overall female

My mom and Carter at the pancake breakfast after the Sweetheart Run.

March
12th- St. Patrick's Day 5k in 20:34 (6:36 pace), 10th overall female/2nd in my age group

Me and Thomas before the St. Patrick's Day 5k.

April 
2nd- Aquarium Run 10k in 42:30 (6:49 pace), 2nd overall female
10th- Run Tulsa Pink 5k in 21:19 (6:44 pace), 1st overall female
30th- Dylan Meier Get Busy Livin 5k in 20:18 (I didn't have my Garmin), 1st overall female

With my award after the Get Busy Livin 5k.

May
No Races! The only month we didn't run a race.

June
11th- Starry Night 5k in 21:03 (6:57 pace), 2nd overall female

Finishing the Starry Night 5k.

July
4th- Firecracker 5k in 21:12 (6:45 pace), 1st overall female

Wearing our medals and race shirts after the Firecracker 5k.

August
13th- Blue Moon 10k in 45:14 (7:16 pace), 1st overall female

Me and Jeremy at the finish of the Blue Moon race.

September 
5th- Escape From Turkey Mountain 5 Mile Trail Race in 44:57 (8:59 pace), 2nd overall female
23rd- Corn Dog Challenge 5k in 21:24 (6:45 pace), 1st overall female

Ready to eat a corndog after the Corndog Challenge 5k.

October
1st- Zoo Run 10k in 41:49 (6:40 pace), 2nd overall female
15th- Twilight Thriller 5k in 19:58 (6:36 pace), 1st overall female
29th- Tulsa Run 15k in 1:05:19 (6:58 pace), 15th overall female/3rd in my age group

Snuggles with Elise after the Zoo Run.

Finishing the Twilight Thriller 5k.

November
5th AM- Jenks 5k in 19:55 (6:16 pace), 1st overall male or female
5th PM- Wicked Wine Run 5k in 21:58 (7:05 pace), 2nd overall male or female
11th- Run to the Lights 5k in 19:45 (6:32 pace), 2nd overall female
20th- Route 66 Half Marathon in 1:31:49 (6:58 pace), 4th overall female
24th- Turkey Trot 5k in 20:31 (6:35 pace), 2nd overall female

Crossing the finish line at the Run to the Lights 5k in Silver Dollar City.

Me and Jeremy after the Route 66 Half Marathon.

December
3rd- Ugly Sweater 5k in 20:50 (6:53 pace), 1st overall female
10th- Ugly Sweater 5k in 20:48 (6:39 pace), 1st overall female
10th- Ugly Sweater Beer Mile in 6:29, 1st overall female

Thomas, Jeremy, and me after the first Ugly Sweater 5k.

Wiping beer off my face during the Ugly Sweater Beer Mile.

I'm ready to top that list in 2017!

Zoo Run 10k

Looking back at past training logs, it looks like having severe allergy issues leading up to the Zoo Run (since the switch to an April race) is a recurring theme. I was a little nervous about the race because I felt terrible all week leading up to it. My lungs were burning on my runs and I had to use my inhaler before running, I was falling asleep on the couch after getting the kids in bed, was coughing a lot, and super congested. I know I've had allergy trouble around this time in the past, but this year was really bad. Ty convinced me to take double allergy pills on Friday evening so I started feeling better around Sunday morning, unfortunately the race was on Saturday, so I didn't get relief before the race. I ran a 6 mile tempo around 3 weeks before the race and averaged 7:13 pace. I wasn't sure what to expect with my allergies throwing me for a loop so I decided to just shoot for my tempo pace and decided to try for sub-45. They changed the schedule for the races around a bit. Normally the fun run is at 8:00, the 5k starts at 8:30, and the 10k starts at 9:00. This year the fun run still started at 8:00, but they swapped the 5k and 10k so the 10k started at 8:30 and the 5k started at 9:00. I was excited about that change because it meant I wouldn't be fighting crowds of 5k walkers during my race, but I was disappointed because it wouldn't give me time to run the fun run with Elise and then get back out to my race start in time. 

I watched the kids start the fun run, then I ran a warm up and did a quick restroom break. I stopped off at the truck to drop my warm ups and just lucked out that Thomas and Michaela ran by on their warm up, so I was able to connect with them and finish my warm up with them. There were a lot of 5k runners milling around the race start which made it feel like a bigger race than it really was. We took off and I was pretty much immediately in the top female position. I'd seen a woman I've run with in the past doing a warm up when we arrived, but she started out slower than me. I knew Thomas was shooting for around 6:50 pace and he wasn't as far ahead of me as I expected, so I was a little worried I was starting too fast, but I felt good so I went with it. I went through the first mile in 7:01 which was faster than I planned, but it felt good and I was excited, thinking I was going to have a better race than I expected. Mile 2 we were running into the wind and my split was 7:24. I realized my first mile had just been too fast, I wasn't actually going to have a better race than expected. I went through mile 3 in 7:12 and then the 5k point in 22:20. I was happy with that because it put me right on pace for sub-45. I knew I could run a negative split and was excited about that. In the 2nd loop I was passing walkers and run/walkers and was confused about how 5k runners would be ahead of me and then I realized they were in the 10k and still doing their first loop.

I went through mile 4 in 7:06 and was excited, thinking I was on pace for a nice negative split. I didn't feel like I slowed down, but I went through mile 5 in 7:23 which was disappointing for me, but I told myself to really push that last mile. We got into the zoo and I started getting confused because the course had changed and I didn't realize it. We had so many turns within the zoo and I was confused about where to go in some places. It kept me from getting down to speed and I was disappointed about that. My last mile was 7:27 but I did rally for 6:34 pace for the last 0.2 of the race. The finish was in a different place than in the past and you couldn't see it until you were right there which made it hard to finish strong. I was very disappointed with the change in course and the use of a smaller building for the post-race food and awards. It was so packed that I had a hard time getting to the stage to receive my award for first overall female which was a $50 gift card to Dick's. I was frustrated about it and a friend said she thought it was due to construction on the new African Wilds which made me feel better. Hopefully the course will go back to the usual after this year. I told Michaela if it was the first time I had run it, like her, I wouldn't have wanted to run it again. They should have made the changes more clear and explained why they had to change the course. I am excited for the new exhibits so I didn't mind the changes once I knew why they made them.

Thomas finished 9th overall and 2nd in his age group in 42:14. I finished 15th overall and 1st female in 44:56. Michaela was 54th overall, 13th female, and 3rd in her age group with a time of 53:24. So we got lots of awards! Carter and Elise both enjoyed the fun run. We got to the start early enough that they were closer to the front of the start line than they usually are and were actually able to run from the start of the race. Ty said Elise was one of the first finishers so she must've passed a lot of people! We will be back, but I'm hoping the construction is completed before next year!

MyHistory at the Zoo Run:

2013- 5k in 21:23

2014- 5k in 23:11

2015- 5k in 21:55

2016- 10k in 41:49

2017- 10k in 44:57

2019- 10k in 42:56

2023- 10k in 43:31 

2025- 10k in 44:56

Zoo Run 10k

Going into this season I was hopeful I could pull off a 10k PR at the Zoo Run and a 15k PR at the Tulsa Run. Then I hit a rough patch a few weeks into my training block that not only set me back, but also shook my confidence. I went into the Zoo Run only having completed 4 mile and 5 mile tempos and the 5 mile tempo was on super fatigued legs and didn't give me a very good idea of where I'm at fitness-wise. My next tempo I had to cut short and I missed 3 speed workouts as I got my legs back under me. I was a little skeptical that I could pull off a decent race. When I looked back at my 2016 training block when I ran my 10k PR, I saw my times during speed workouts and tempos this season were very comparable to what I had run then. The main difference this time around was that I had fewer of them. I told myself there wasn't anything going into the Zoo Run that year that indicated I could run the time I was able to pull off, so maybe I'd be able to pull out some magic again. Afterall, I had finished the Corndog Classic 5k in 20:17 which predicts a low 42 minute 5k.

I watched the start of the 5k and took some pictures of dad go by, but missed mom. Then I took off for a 2 mile warm up and actually felt pretty good. I did a couple strides in 6:30 pace which I felt like was a good sign. We took off at the start of the race and I reminded myself to take off conservatively. I felt like I was running a pace that would allow me to negative split the race. I was pleased when my first mile split was 6:38. I told myself a PR was a definite possibility. I just wanted to make it to the 5k point because I knew by then I'd have a better idea what kind of race I'd be able to put together. Jeremy had a big lead on me and there were a couple guys between him and me. I told myself the guy closest to me was running sub-42 and I needed to maintain contact with him. I was surprised when I went through the 2nd mile in 6:46 as I felt like I was maintaining pace. I was a little worried at that point that I had slowed so much when I felt like I was maintaining pace. I told myself there was still a chance I could run a PR, I'd see where I was at the 5k point. I was a little bit in denial because I was already starting to feel a little rough.

Dad taking off in the 5k.

I finished up the first lap with a 6:54 mile and figured a PR was pretty much out the window. But I looked at my 5k split which I went through in 21:06. I figured if I could run a negative split I might still be able to sneak under 42. I didn't feel like I picked it up for mile 4 so I was pleasantly surprised to see I ran a 6:44 mile. I told myself to run the next mile in under 6:54 and I'd be on my way to running a negative split. But mile 5 was when I really started to struggle. I checked a couple times and saw I was starting to sneak over 7:00 pace. I passed a guy in front of me and there was no one close to me. We were passing other 10k runners still on their first loop. I was really losing steam. I was battling myself between the thoughts of "I can slow down and I'll still be under 43 minutes," and "I can still pull off a negative split if I keep pushing." Part of me wanted to give in and part of me wanted to go for the fastest time I could.

We came up on the mile 5 mark and I knew we would keep going straight as the people on their first loop would turn right. I saw Jeremy turn right with the 10k runners on their first loop and started yelling at him as loud as I could. I kept yelling until I got a side stitch. When I came up on that section I thought about trying to chase Jeremy down to tell him he missed the turn but I knew I wouldn't be able to catch up to him. Then I realized if I kept going straight, the road curves differently and I'd be able to get closer to him there. When I got to the turn the police officer directing runners yelled at me to turn right and I ignored him twice. Finally the 3rd time he yelled at me I told him I had already completed my 2nd loop. When I got closer to Jeremy on the road parallel to where he was I started yelling at him again and he still didn't hear me. I alerted the course official that the man in the tiger shirt had turned and should have gone straight. I was hopeful he would use a walkie talkie or a megaphone to get Jeremy's attention. Mile 5 was 7:10 and between worrying about Jeremy, my monster side stitch from yelling at him again, and that super slow mile I lost a lot of my fight. As I turned into the zoo, a guy pulled up beside me and I silently thanked him for pulling me back into the race. I decided to try to stick with him and hopefully drop my last mile a little. Focusing on staying with him helped me stop worrying about Jeremy since there was nothing I could do to help him.

At one point I saw a police officer on a motorcycle turn and go back out of the zoo. When I saw him my thought was immediately that something had happened to Jeremy and he was riding out to assist with him. I lost my fight a little bit at that point and decided I didn't care if I beat the guy I was racing with or not and let him pull away from me. But then as we neared the corner to the finish, I was to pull up enough fight to sprint against him (even though he still beat me) and ran the last portion of the race in 6:15 pace. So that was super fast compared to what I had been slogging through beforehand! I had thought I'd finish around 42:30 and was certain I would be under 43 minutes so I was quite surprised I'd barely snuck under 43 with a time of 42:56! I realized 42:30 was what I would have run with the 6:51 pace I averaged, but with the extra distance added from all the turns, I barely squeaked under 43.

Edged out at the finish.

I joked that I actually beat him because I ran through the finish and he didn't.

I told everyone what had happened with Jeremy and took off for my cool down. I figured if Jeremy ran an extra loop and ran a 15k he should finish around the time I returned from my cool down. When I got back from my cool down he still wasn't finished. I tried not to worry and told myself maybe Jeremy had decided to stop and walk it in when he realized how much extra he had run. Shortly after that Ty got a call that Jeremy had passed out and was in an ambulance at the entrance. I ran back out to the entrance much faster than I would have guessed I could. It sounded like Jeremy had a seizure when he hit his head from passing out. He had bruising and cuts and a busted up lip. It looked rough. I got into the ambulance with Jeremy after hearing what happened from the EMT and police officer on site. Jeremy had come around and knew what was happening by the time I got there. I told him I thought he should go to the hospital just to make sure everything was okay. He agreed and dad and Ty showed up in a golf cart with a zoo employee a little bit later. Dad rode with Jeremy in the ambulance and I rode back to the zoo entrance with Ty. We drove mom to the hospital to be with dad and Jeremy and we all went home. They ended up not doing a CT scan and released Jeremy shortly after a visit with the doctor.

Jeremy's incident distracted me from how bad of a race I'd had and I no longer cared about it. I've been a bit disappointed with how this season has gone as far as my race times have gone, but I'm looking at this season as a base for my Boston Marathon training so it's hard to be too disappointed. I feel a bit discouraged going into the Tulsa Run when I had hoped to feel confident in a PR. Now I just hope to run a smart race and enjoy myself. We will see what happens! I got a little boost in confidence the following weekend when I was able to put together a solid 8 mile tempo with an average of 6:54 pace. So I'm not fully counting out the possibility of ending the season with a 15k PR!

I finished in 42:56. The results show that was 6:55 pace but my Garmin shows 6:51 pace, thanks to all the turns adding some distance. I was 8th out of 313 overall, 1st female, and 1st out of 32 in my age group. I looked at other people's results on Strava and felt a little better about how far off my time was from my PR when I saw comments about how they ran a minute and a half slower than they had hoped. It did end up being warm for the race, which didn't start until 9:00, and it was very humid! Thomas finished in 46:36 which put him 19th overall and 5th of 25 in his age group. Mom and dad ran the 5k. Dad finished in 25:07 which put him 46th out of 1,062 overall and 2nd of 19 in his age group. Mom finished in 35:46, good for 378th overall and 3rd of 26th in her age group.

Thomas finishing.

Another Postpartum PR

On Saturday we ran the Zoo Run 5k.  It was our first time running the race.  Ty read online that traffic getting into the zoo on race day is crazy.  The website suggested adding 30 minutes to your regular travel time in order to arrive on time.  Ty wanted to leave the house no later than 7:30 for the 8:30 race and we left a few minutes after 7:30.

The whole crew after the race.

We did fine getting to the zoo, but traffic getting into the parking lot was nuts.  After sitting in traffic for 20 minutes to get into the zoo, we found a parking lot outside the park and walked up to the start area.  At this point we had about 5 minutes until race start and still needed to pick up our timing chips. 

As everyone else walked, I ran to the race start area to find the timing chips.  I grabbed mine, found everyone else, got their bib numbers, and picked up their chips.  As I was running back over to the start area (which was packed) I heard them announcing we had one minute until start time.  I still had my warmup sweats on and my timing chip in my hand.  I pulled off my sweats, shoved them under the stroller, and bent down to put my chip on my shoe as they began to count down 30 seconds from the race start.  The gun went off as I finished attaching my chip with zip ties.  I stood up and took off running.  I was far enough back I was weaving through walkers and knew it had taken me quite a while just to get to the starting line.

Thomas took his stroller duties seriously.

I spent the entire first mile of the race running on the grass to the side of the course and weaving through runners and walkers.  I was impressed that I finished the first mile in 6:50 with all the weaving I was doing.  My plan had been to run the same pace as Clash of the Clans, but to run my 2nd mile closer to 7 minutes rather than 7:05.  During the 2nd mile I was still passing LOTS of runners, but I was weaving much less.  My 2nd mile was 6:56, right where I wanted it to be!  I knew I could pick it up during the last mile and feelt good knowing I was on pace to run a new postpartum PR.

We turned into the zoo with about a half-mile or so to go.  I could see 2 young girls running ahead of me.  I caught up to them with about a quarter-mile to go and encouraged them as I passed them.  They took off sprinting as I went by and I caught up to them again.  When I looked down at my watch we were running 6:00 pace!  I was very impressed by how fast they were and took some comfort knowing that I had started the race late and wouldn't normally be running with such young girls.  I ended up finishing ahead of both the girls and found out at the awards ceremony that the one little girl was 9 years old and ran a 22:51!!!!  Crazy fast!  I finished mile 3 in 6:47 and as I crossed the finish line I saw 22:40something.  I figured I must've been a minute or so late starting the race.

As I walked back toward the race course to cheer on the rest of the family, I checked my watch.  According to my Garmin I had finished the race in 21:23, another postpartum PR!   It was fun to watch my brother, Thomas, come running up the hill to the finish pushing Carter in the stroller.  After seeing everyone finish I took off for my cool down.  It was so much fun running my cool down inside the zoo.  I saw lions, tigers, hyenas, and a black bear as I ran.

We stayed for the awards ceremony.  I knew they would go off of gun time rather than chip times for awards, but thought there was a chance some of us had still medaled.  I didn't realize my parents didn't know awards are based on gun time.  My dad was pretty disappointed.  I ended up 2nd in my age group and 4th overall female with a gun time of 22:50.  If I had started the race on time I would have won my age group and been 2nd overall female (3 seconds behind the winner, possibly giving her a run for her money).  My mom was the only other person in our group to medal with 3rd place in her age group.  She would have been 2nd place with her chip time.  My dad was 4th in his age group, but would have been 2nd had he started the race on time.

At the awards ceremony they had people in animal costumes which cracked me up and made me think of the Aquarium Run where there was a sea turtle and a shark costume.  I had gotten Carter's picture with the animals at the Aquarium Run, so of course I had to get a picture of him with the animals at the Zoo Run!  He enjoyed the animals a lot more this time around and even smiled at them!

Now we know for next year, leave earlier for this race!  We definitely enjoyed the race and plan to run it again!

Linking up with Ashley for Move it Monday!

Zoo Run 10k

This was the 5th year we've run the Zoo Run and the 2nd time I've done the 10k. I love the race, it is so much fun! The course is flat and finishes inside the zoo which is neat and the post-race food and activities are awesome. Last year I had such an awesome fall season and ran a 10k PR at this race, read about it here. I knew I wasn't going to be anywhere near my time of 41:49 from last year but hoped to still be able to run under 45 minutes. I hadn't done speed work in a few weeks because my legs were tired from my long runs but was feeling up to speed work the week of the Zoo Run. I ran 20 miles on Sunday so I didn't want to push my speed work up to Tuesday because I didn't feel like that would give me enough time to recover. Instead I went ahead and ran my speed work on Wednesday which went really well. Thursday and Friday's runs were tough and my legs felt fatigued so I was a little worried the 20 miler combined with the speed work would keep my legs from feeling fresh on Saturday for the race. Although my legs felt tired going into the race, they weren't too fatigued during it and I actually enjoyed the run quite a bit. I could definitely feel that my legs weren't fresh but they didn't feel too bad.

Carter with a giraffe after the race.

Mom and dad ran the 5k while Jeremy, Thomas, and I were all in the 10k. Thomas had decided late in the game to switch to the 10k when I told him what a flat course it was. It was his first time racing a 10k. He'd run a 10k leg in our marathon relay and that was his only experience with the distance. Ty wasn't able to run as he is dealing with an ankle injury so he sat the race out with the kids. Thomas and I took the kids over to a playground while we waited for the 5k to start and then cheered for mom and dad from there. Jeremy met us over there and then when Ty came over I took off for my warm-up. The 10k started 30 minutes after the 5k which gave me plenty of time to warm up and use the restroom before heading to the start area. I saw the lady I ran with at the race last year and knew she'd blow me out of the water this year but enjoyed seeing her anyway. We chatted a little bit after the race and she felt for me coming back from an injury and some time off.

Elise playing on the playground before the race.

Jeremy, Thomas, and I started together. I had no trouble with my Garmin picking up satellites since I'd already had it connected for my warm-up. Jeremy and Thomas both had trouble and neither of them were connected to satellites when the race started. My plan was to just go out and see what I could do. I was hoping to be somewhere in the 7:00-7:15 pace range. I really was hoping I'd be closer to 7:00 minute pace but it was apparent early on in the race that wasn't going to happen. I could definitely feel the 20 miles/Wednesday speed work in my legs. I wasn't struggling aerobically, I was struggling with my legs. Between the 1k and 2k marks there were a couple of huge puddles that covered the entire race path and were about an inch deep. I chuckled a little in my head that I hadn't wanted to walk in the grass to get to the playground as I didn't want to get my shoes wet and here I was running through a giant puddle during the race. So much for dry shoes! My first mile split was 7:03. I was running a little bit back from a girl so I kept my sights on her and tried to reel her in. I went through the 2nd mile in 7:08. The course is 2 loops that aren't exactly the same. The first loop is a 5k loop and then the 2nd loop you turn early since you then go into the zoo for the last mile. I passed the girl I'd been going for a little before going through the 3rd mile in 7:12. When I came through the 5k mark I looked and saw I had run the 5k in 22:10 so I figured I'd finish around 44:30 since I'd looked right at 3.1 on my watch and my watch typically isn't right on with course splits.

Me, Jeremy, and Thomas at the start of the race.

I still felt pretty good during the 4th mile and kept telling myself, only 2 miles to go after this one. I held a steady pace with a 7:10 mile and told myself to keep it at 7:10 or under for the last 2 miles. I went through mile 5 also in 7:10 and decided to shoot for under 7:10 for the last mile. I couldn't help but think that I had run 7:10 pace for the Aquarium Run Half-Marathon which I'd considered a bad race at the time. I was a bit disappointed that 7:10 pace was all I had but I couldn't expect much more on the training I've had either. We were heading into the zoo and I could see a couple of guys a ways ahead of me but they had enough of a lead there wasn't much chance I could pass them. It was almost the exact same situation I found myself in last year during this race. We hit the first hill and that's when I realized I wasn't going to be able to hit under 7:10 for the last mile. My legs were pretty dead and I was just trying to hold on. The rest of the race through the zoo was tough and I just kept trying to keep pushing through on dead legs. At one point you go out and back and I saw 3 women ahead of me but also knew there was at least one ahead of them who I couldn't see so I figured I was 5th or 6th overall female. My last mile was 7:15 and I got down to 6:49 pace for my finishing kick. My goal for the race was to break 45 minutes and after the half way point I was pretty confident I had that wrapped up since I hadn't slowed too much at the end but as I approached the finish line I saw 44:5X on the clock and took off sprinting because I knew it would be close. I don't think I did a very good job of running the tangents because my Garmin showed 6.29 for the race. I finished in 44:57 and my Garmin showed 7:09 pace. So it was in my goal range but I still didn't feel satisfied. I guess mostly because I know I'm capable of so much faster!

Me finishing the 10k, no man's land, haha!

I saw Jeremy finish right behind me and then we went over to watch for Thomas. We were super impressed when he rounded the corner just flying and passed the 2 guys who had been right in front of him. Ty got a really great picture where it looks like the other guy is about to cry as Thomas is passing him. It was pretty awesome. He had such a fast finish that other people around us were commenting on his kick. He kept saying how much more fun racing is when you actually train. He was pretty pumped and I'd say he enjoyed his first 10k! I did my cool down through the zoo and then out into the parking lot. I ran by the tiger exhibit as the tiger walked back and forth in front of the glass roaring which was pretty cool. I always love doing my cool down in the zoo while seeing all the animals. The kids played on the inflatables while I ran my cool down and then we headed to show mom and dad the new exhibit. Carter really wanted them to see the binturong aka bear cat which is an animal we didn't know existed until the zoo added it to the new exhibit.

Jeremy finishing the race.

Thomas blowing past people at the finish.

Dad ran the 5k but had to run a little slower than usual due to having double hernia surgery a month ago. He was excited he still placed in his age group, getting 2nd out of 13. He was also 73rd out of 1,046 overall with a time of 25:12. It was only the 2nd time he's placed in his age group at this race which he found funny since he was just coming back after surgery! Mom also placed in her age group finishing in 34:32 which put her 2nd out of 23 in her age group and 352nd overall. In the 10k my time of 44:57 put me 27th out of 404 overall, 6th out of 215 females, and 3rd out of 36 in my age group. Jeremy finished in 45:20 which put him 4th out of 18 in his age group and 31st overall. Thomas finished in 46:56 which put him 7th out of 22 in his age group and 45th overall. Last year I was 2nd overall female and just got a medal. This year they gave gift card to the top 3 overall finishers. The only times they've given out awards to the top 3 overall were years I wasn't in the top 3, go figure!

Me, Thomas, and Jeremy after the race.

Dad and mom with the kids after the race.

Sweetheart Run 10k

Going into Saturday's race I had put a lot of pressure on myself to run a 10k PR. I broke 42 minutes for the first time in the 10k this past fall with a 41:49 at the Zoo Run 10k. I felt like if I could beat that time it would mean I could for sure run a PR at the Aquarium Run half in April. This season I've had a bit of a struggle fest with my tempo runs. I ran a 6 mile tempo at 6:51 pace and followed that up with a 7 mile tempo at 6:47 pace. Since then I've attempted an 8 mile tempo twice and wasn't able to make it happen either time. The first missed attempt I talked about here and was due to overtraining that week (too much speed work). The second missed attempt was due to 30 mph winds. I tried to force the pace running into the wind and killed myself so much I ended up cutting it short with a 6 mile tempo way over my intended pace, in a 7:07 average. Thanks to my failed tempo runs I wasn't feeling very confident in my ability to run a strong 10k. I was able to pull out a great 1200/400 speed workout the week before race week beating all my times from the last time I did the workout (in the fall at 8 weeks into my training cycle) by 6-8 seconds. But I followed that up with a speed workout the following week where I struggled and barely hit the times I had hit during the workout when I did it the week of the Zoo Run 10k. I was hoping to go out and kill my times from that week so I would feel confident in my ability at pulling out a PR. Add in that the Zoo Run 10k is the flattest 10k course I've ever run and although the Sweetheart Run course isn't super hilly it is much more challenging and the hill going into mile 5 kicks my butt every year. Read about that hill in last year's race recap here.

Mom went to get her camera after we took the picture and it was still on timer so we took a goofy pic.

I'm always a bit of a basket case for my first race of the season because I don't have recent races to compare to or to give me confidence in my abilities. This time was even worse because I didn't have any recent strong tempo runs to base my race goals off of. I also had the added pressure that I've set my sights on a sub-1:30 half this season which has been a goal of mine for almost 10 years now, but is one I gave up on after having kids. I thought it was something I would never be able to do now that my body has changed, but this fall's 1:31:49 gave me renewed interest in the goal and a belief that I can actually do it. I wanted a fast 10k time to give me confidence as well as an extra push of motivation going into the second half of this training cycle. My goal was to average 6:35-6:39 miles for this race. That would give me a new 10k PR and some confidence that all the work of these 50 mile weeks is paying off. Initially I planned to take a cut back week the week of the race to give my legs a bit of a rest and to ensure I would be able to run a PR. The more I thought about it the less I wanted to go through with that plan because I had to take a cut back week when I was having issues with my knee during week 4 of this training cycle. I only hit 40 miles for that week. My original plan had been to run 50 mile weeks for 5 weeks and then have a 40-45 mile week the week of the Sweetheart Run, then 2 more 50 mile weeks followed by a 40-45 mile week before my 5k and then start to taper back before the half-marathon. I didn't like the idea of 3 weeks at 50 miles, then a 40 mile week, then one week at 50 miles, and then another 40-45 mile week. I debated it with myself for a while and then decided to focus on my long term goal of a PR at the half. I felt the extra mileage on race week wouldn't hurt me as much for the 10k as not getting enough weekly mileage would hurt me in the long run. I want to run sub-1:30 so badly at this point that I hate to take any chances that might jeopardize my ability to do so, even if it meant not running a PR in the 10k.

Race morning I got up at the same time as Ty who was running the 5k which started at 7:45. My race didn't start until 8:30. I was excited and nervous at the same time. My lack of recent strong workouts was messing with my confidence but I kept telling myself all I could do was go out and run as hard as I could. I was also focusing on the fact that this year Jeremy and I were running the 10k as a team named Sweet Sibs. Last year at this race we were signed up to run the 10k as a team and Jeremy was still in the hospital, just starting to walk, when I ran the race. It was a really tough race for me because I was running alone. Instead of running the 10k with Jeremy, I was lined up at the start by myself while everyone else in my family had run the 5k earlier in the morning. I was so excited that this year was going to be so different from last year! Mom, dad, and Ty left for the race and I got the kids ready to go. We stopped by Jeremy's house so he could follow us and we could park in the same place. Then Jeremy took the kids in the stroller so I could take off for my warm-up. I had planned on a 2 mile warm up but realized it would be pushing it to get a mile and a half in so I just did that. Thank goodness I did as I ran up to the start as they were announcing we had 2 minutes before the race. I didn't have time for a last minute porta potty break so I just took my sweats off and jumped into the corral. I looked over to see the fastest area high school girl standing next to me. She can run sub-18 minute 5ks so I knew I would be racing for 2nd place.

Taking off at the start of the race.

We took off at the start and I made a conscious effort not to look at my watch too much because I knew my mile splits wouldn't be super consistent due to the hills based on how my mile splits have varied in previous years. I definitely wanted to run around 6:40 pace for the most part though. By the half mile mark I had moved up to 2nd female with the high school girl way out ahead of me in the lead pack. There were 2 guys between me and the lead pack and I ran completely alone like that for pretty much the entire race. I went through the first mile in 6:31 which surprised me because I felt like I was running slow and had been a little worried I was going to be over 6:40 for the first mile. We were running out into the wind which wasn't terrible like it had been all week long, but it was enough to notice it and wish it was at my side. Mile 2 was 6:40. We were coming up on Riverside where I knew we would go down the hill that kills me on the way back each year and then we'd turn right and then run down Riverside before running uphill and turning down a road where we would run out and turn around a cone and come back. I knew as we came down the hill we should immediately turn right but there was a police officer there waving us toward him around the median and then to the right. I knew that was adding a bit of distance but didn't worry about it as my 3rd mile was 6:36. I knew I was 13 seconds under pace and wondered if that would be enough for mile 5 which is a real ball buster. Turning around the cone at the half way point and heading back I saw Jeremy and cheered for him. Once I made it to Riverside I started getting excited about seeing Ty before I remembered he'd run the 5k earlier in the morning and I wouldn't be seeing him. Lots of runners heading out toward the turn around cheered for me and told me I was the 2nd female which was nice and gave me a bit of a boost.

My watch beeped for my 4th mile split a little bit before the hill I was dreading. I had run the mile in 6:40. As I went up the hill I kept telling myself to hit at least 6:53 for mile 5. If I could do that and then kick it in the last mile I could still run a PR. We were again waved the long way around the turn. I was tempted to run the course according to the course map and the way we were signaled last year, but I didn't want to look like I was cutting the course and attempting to cheat, especially because I would pass the guy in front of me if I did so. I was doing okay on the hill until about half-way up and then my legs started burning. Once they were on fire I couldn't get them back. I crested the top of the hill and then had to immediately start up a slight, although incredibly long, incline. I was really struggling and knew I was losing momentum. I kept telling myself 6:53, 6:53, 6:53 over and over. When my watch beeped for my mile 5 split which was 7:02, I was heart broken. I was now 9 seconds over pace. I knew I'd have to run a 6:31 mile for the last mile to make up for what I had lost and it just wasn't in my legs. I was struggling and each time I looked down at my watch it would show I was running 6:55 pace which was disheartening. Finally with about half a mile to go a guy passed me and going with him gave me a second wind. It really made me wish I hadn't been running the whole race alone. I went with him and tried to keep the gap from getting too large. I knew a PR was out the window after that terrible 5th mile but I kept telling myself if I could just hang on maybe I could squeak in under 42 minutes. I could tell I wasn't making up as much ground as I would have liked though. As we turned the corner toward the finish I could see Carter and my dad who were both cheering and it was a huge pick me up. I went through mile 6 in 6:46. Then I saw mom and Elise and couldn't stop smiling. Once the finishing clock came into view I could see it was already over 42 minutes and even though I didn't feel motivated to kick it in at that point, I sprinted toward the finish. I was shocked when I stopped my watch and saw I had finished in 42:35 which put me slower than the Aquarium Run 10k last spring where I averaged 6:48 pace. Did I really lose that much time in mile 5?!!!? But then I remembered the extra distance we added going around the median before the turn and saw I had run 6.34 miles. So even though my time was a lot slower than what I had been hoping for, I had still averaged 6:43 pace which was only 4 seconds per mile slower than the high range of my goal so not terrible. I felt pretty confident that if mile 5 hadn't had those big hills I could have held onto at least 6:45 pace for those last 2 miles, if not faster. The hill did me in enough that I couldn't get my legs back during the last mile.

Coming up to the finish. You can tell how much I'm hurting because I'm tilting my head back. Ty, Carter, and dad are in the background.

Running toward the finish line, my mom took this picture.

My Garmin after the race.

I watched Jeremy finish just under 45 minutes looking very strong and then took off for my cool down. I was really bummed about my time and about how much I lost in mile 5. This course gets me every year. Maybe I need to plan better and go out slower or maybe I just need to not attempt a PR on this course. Last year my goal had been sub-43 and I ran 43:11. Although I was slower than my time in the fall, I beat last year's time by almost 40 seconds with the course being longer this year, so I can be proud of that. I just really needed something to boost my confidence after a string of failed tempo runs and this race was not it! Now that I have this race behind me I feel like a lower mileage week this past week so I could run a faster 10k time may have been more helpful to my confidence and my motivation than the extra mileage will be to my fitness and strength toward the half-marathon. It was tough running my cool down on dead tired legs after a sub-par performance. I spent much of the time going over what went wrong and wondering if all this training and all these 50 mile weeks won't actually help me improve my half-marathon time as much as I am hoping. But I was also just pointing out a few days before the race how hard it is to PR in multiple race distances in one training cycle because you are training through races and you aren't in peak performance shape until the end of the cycle. I think running this 10k at the end of a 50 mile week compared to running the Zoo Run 10k at the end of a 35 mile week made a big difference in terms of how I felt during the race and in my time. When I put 6:43 pace for a 10k into a pace calculator it says it equals a 41:44 10k. So even with a terrible 5th mile, had this race been spot on rather than a bit long I still would have had a chance at a PR. While that doesn't make me feel a whole lot better, it does help a bit. I'm disappointed in this race and wish I could have put together a more solid performance, but it is firing me up for my 5k in March quite a bit. I am determined to get a strong race in before the half so I can have a boost of confidence going into it. I am now definitely going to take a cut back week before the 5k, either 40 or 45 miles so I can have a strong race.

Jeremy finishing the 10k.

The silver lining of this race was the team aspect. I looked at the 5k results in the car on the way to Carter's friend's birthday party and saw that my parents had placed 6th out of 95 teams so I figured Jeremy and I probably did pretty well in the 10k team results as I was 9th overall and he was 11th! Sure enough we won the team competition with a combined time almost 30 minutes faster than the 2nd place team! I finished 9th out of 660 overall and 2nd out of 452 females, winning my age group with a time of 42:35. Jeremy was 11th overall and 2nd out of 21 in his age group with a time of 44:56. Mom, dad, and Ty all ran the 5k earlier in the morning. Dad finished in a post-surgery PR, finally making it back under 24 minutes again with a time of 23:40! That put him 2nd out of 26 in his age group. Mom competed in her new 60-64 age group for the first time, taking 2nd out of 23 with a time of 34:16. Ty ran his first race without the stroller in a long time and finished in 27:31 which put him 7th out of 31 in his age group! I was a little bummed when I realized had I run the 5k on a team with Ty, we would have won! I would have needed to run around 20:30 for us to win and I did that at the Race Into the New Year for the 5k portion of what I knew (at the half-way point) was going to be a 3.5 mile race! It was definitely awesome to be on a team with Jeremy in the 10k after the emotional roller coaster of last year's race, that's for sure! So although I am a bit down about this race, I'm not out. I will dust myself off and keep plugging away one run at a time. If this training cycle doesn't yield the results I'm hoping for, I will re-evaluate and try again in the fall. That's what's great about running, you can always try again! And after beating myself up over this race for days I remembered the disappointing race I had at the Twilight Thriller 5k in the fall. Sometimes going for a PR on a course that I know isn't a good course for a fast time just isn't a good idea and backfires on me! Maybe at some point I'll learn!

Dad finishing the 5k.

Ty finishing the 5k.

Mom finishing the 5k.

Me and Jeremy with our winnings.