One of the very few days this year that was below freezing happened to be race day number two! The 7th Annual Valentine's (Frostbite) Chase 5K and Couples Run on February 12th at Cape Henlopen State Park in Lewes DE had almost 70 crazy runners out in the freezing cold and wind. Again with the racing in the wind! The first place finisher (he finished in less then 17 minutes, yup less then 6 minutes a mile) was wearing shorts. Good thing he ran fast.
As we were lining up at the start, one of the organizers was telling us that water was available just before the hill, but as they were pouring it, it was freezing. Awesome. I skipped the water station on this run.
The Dad and the kiddos got out of the car to cheer me on at the start. The Politician was doing his own little sprints to keep warm and PT and the Enforcer were covered from head to toe in coats, hats and fleece blankets. Before the start, I was a bit worried about the state of my toes in my barefoot shoes. They were a bit numb and quite frozen as far as I could tell. Luckily, they warmed up quickly as the race began.
Because of the cold, I was hoping to finish in less then 40 minutes again. After a terrible month of training in January, I wasn't expecting run much faster then my first race. I was worried about the cold air in my lungs while running and the lack of feeling in my fingers and toes at the start making my finish time a bit slower. Luckily, I was wrong! I finished in 33:27! Almost 4 minutes faster then my last race, giving me a pace of about 10:47 per mile. I couldn't have been happier!
I did come in closer to the end of the pack this time, 53rd out of 68 and 5th of 6 in my age group.
The course was an out and back course along one of the trails at the park. I'm sure in April, May or even some summer months the trail is a great place for a walk. It's a paved trail and mostly covered with trees until you reach the hill over looking the beach. But, on the coldest day this year, the tree cover meant LOTS of ice. There were a few patches of black ice on the trail and quite a bit on the hill, but luckily I didn't hear of any falls or injuries.
There were a few times during the race where I wanted to stop and walk, but after a few steps the cold would set in again and running just felt better. That was a nice change! Every time I would want to stop and would slow down a bit, I could hear someone coming up behind me. Over and over I told myself, don't get passed walking, don't get passed walking. I feel like that would be giving up on myself a little bit. If I get passed while running, that's fine with me. I am pushing my body as fast as it will go and someone else's just goes faster. I'm ok with that. It really did give me the motivation I needed to keep my feet moving.
I have to say, I have never been happier to see a bright orange cone then I was to see the turn for the last quarter mile. As the course turned and twisted back to the parking lot where the finish line was, I was looking for that clock at every turn!
At the final turn, I could see the Dad and the Politician standing next to the finish line (PT and the Enforcer were nearby in the car.) The Politician is a great cheering motivator! There is nothing like seeing your little man cheer you on to the finish. It was great. His little voice carried over the blacktop and gave me that extra push I needed at the end. He came over and gave me a great big hug afterward and then asked to go back to the car where it was warm. (By the way, this end of race photo makes me want to work on my form a bit more...)
End of race snacks were water, bananas, apples and some cookies. I had left a bottle of water in the car and I was glad for it because it wasn't frozen. I grabbed a few sandwich cookies too. Yum. We didn't stick around for the awards and medals since it was so cold outside and the kids were getting ready for some lunch. The Politician and I did step out on the fishing pier for a few VERY WINDY photos. The wind was whipping the water into the shore.
What I learned from Race Number 2:
1. Even in the freezing cold, I will get to hot for my sleeves. If the race had been much longer I would have wanted to get rid of my sleeves.
2. Little motivations for each step help me to finish the bigger goals.
3. I really enjoy cheering on the runners/walkers I pass on my way back through the course. The smiles and nods I get back are much more numerous and encouraging then those I got from runners who passed me on their way back.
4. No matter how nice the view is at the top, I am just happy to finally start going down.
5. Stepping on or around ice, will really mess up your running groove.
One of the other racers commented that "we all should have our heads examined" for running on such a cold day. Maybe we should, but the race was a success anyway! Every racer was given a red short sleeved technical shirt, not as nice looking as race #1 shirts, but the technical shirt is nice. I'm not a fan of red though, so this one will probably become a craft project later this year. I am looking forward to a warmer race with much less wind! Come on Race #3!
