8 down 4 to go (aka a shorter Pittsburgh run)

The Run Around the Square 5K in Regent Square in Pittsburgh, PA on August 25th could easily become a race to do annually. With a combination of street, sidewalk and trail this race has so much character and an amazing amount of community support for a smaller race.

Capped at 1,500 racers, the race feels bigger because of a few tight turns and a narrow strips. But the energy of the crowd and the course layout, make up for the sometimes cramped running space.

Before the 5K, they ran a 1.5 mile family fun and dog walk. Many of those participants stayed to cheer on the 5Kers. I was presently surprised at how well all the pooches behaved! (We did see a white version of Bear which was a bit strange!)

Jamming Duet

The start of the race is through a neighborhood of brick cobblestone streets and then winds through the trails of beautiful Frick Park. The most welcomed surprise on the course were the many musicians. In the neighborhood there was a musician or two at almost every turn and the there were a few in the park on the trail. One of the people in the neighborhood had a boom-box out playing a local radio station. My favorite was the tuba player in the trees, sadly I didn't get a photo of him!

Electric Violinist

In addition to the few water stops provided by the race (and at least one by a local neighborhood gentleman,) there was a beer and champagne stop on the trail inside the park. I'm not a fan of bubbles in my drinks, but even so I think it was placed a little to early in the race. We still had at least half of the distance to left to travel and I'm not sure how that would have settled on the stomach. They did seem to be filling up as quickly as people were taking them, so maybe it's just me!

My dad found this race for me and he and my mom raced as well. Dad ran a great race and finished less then two minutes behind me. Way to go Dad! Mom had a great race too and we were talking about how we were surprised to see the finish because we could have kicked it in a little more at the end if we realized the finish was so close.

All in Blue and Ready to Race!

Now, I have never been to an after-race party like the one after this race. Spectators and racers meet up in Fern Hallow at the race finish to enjoy that post-race glow, admire the newly earned race medal and chow down on tons of food. Not only were bananas, chips, breads and other normally seen post race foods available, but they also had a full grill going with hot dogs and hamburgers (we skipped this because of the insane line) and the beer tent was definitely popular. There were also a row of venders from stores, churches, and restaurants. Most, if not all, of them had something delicious to offer runners. A Mexican restaurant was handing out salsa and chips, guacamole and pita chips (SO DELICIOUS) and a gaspacho along side lemonade or sangria.  Rita's was another stop on my list though we waited until we were on the way out because the line was incredibly long at first. The Red Velvet Cake Cream Ice was the perfect end to a great event, sweet, cool and refreshing.

Despite the great atmosphere, I ran a slower race then the July 4th race. Trail races are always a little slower and the course was pretty packed, then there's that summer heat which is not my friend when I'm trying to speed along. I finished the 5K in 34:42 for an 11:12/mile. Not bad, but not what I was hoping for either. I came in 991st out of 1500 and 92nd out of 123 in my age group 25-29.

Things I learned from Race #8:

1. Sangria is right up there with wine for me as a post race pick-up, very tasty.
2. I do not like to run downhill. Yes, you go fast, but I feel like I am going to trip and fall on my face the whole way down. 
3. Live musicians on a course really make the race a wonderfully different experience. 
4. I really enjoy the hybrid races (road and trail.) I wonder if I can find more like this one. I love running on trails, but running during the weekend no one is on the trails here and that doesn't feel so safe to me...
5. Having a phone with GPS is incredibly helpful when down in a wooded holler with no clear idea how to get back to the car. When technology works it's wonderful!

Climbing steps out of the holler!

Coming up with five newly learned things for each race is becoming more difficult!

Hopefully the weather cools down a bit and I can increase my speed before the UNDY5000 at the end of the month! We'll see!