My First Race!

I did my first 5k today!  It was the Baltimore Women’s Classic in Baltimore, MD.  What a day!

My day started bright and early at 5:30 am.  The kids, Mike and I all piled into the car and were on the road by 6am.  After a trip through the McDonalds drive thru, we were cruising down 83 into the city.  We parked and were on the race field by 7:30.  The festivities were well underway when we got there.  They had the music pumping and the crowd was already getting pumped.  Lynn Brick, a local fitness celebrity, did a quick warm up with the racers and we were off to line up! 

The start of the race was lined with bright yellow signs that have minutes per mile printed on them, and then walker/stroller.  I joined the crowd at the 13 minutes per mile sign.  In no time, the gun went off and the race started!  The beginning of the race was slow.  It took me about 3 minutes to actually cross the starting line.  Very quickly, I learned that I put myself to far back in the line up. Most of the first mile I spend weaving in and out of walkers, jogging stroller and slower runners.

 Once the crowd thinned out some, I hit my stride.  I tried to run about 3 minutes and then walk about 1.  The course had some slight hills, but was nothing too difficult.  This being my first run, I was pleasantly surprised by the number of spectators all along the course cheer one everyone, not just their loved ones.  I really appreciated that and it kept me going.  The first water station came at about the 1.5 mile mark.  That brought another first run surprise.  The wonderful volunteers handed out water in small plastic cups.  There were plenty of trash can to dispose of the empty cups in, but there were many women who chose to just drop their cup—right there on the course!  I found this very rude, and it really slowed me down.  I could not run though all the trash right on the course. 

The final quarter mile was by far my favorite.  I was getting tried and could feel myself loosing stream. Then we turned our final corner and ran right along Baltimore’s inner harbor.  The water is so beautiful and inspiring in the morning.  I got my second wind and finished strong.  As I was running down the finish line, I glanced at the official clock.  It read just at 44 minutes.  Crossing the finish line was a great feeling!  I actually did it! 

Once I was though the shoot, volunteers on both sides of me started handed me things.  Not knowing what to expect, it was a bit overwhelming.  I was very tired and excited at the same time.  I was first handed an ice cold BWC logo towel.  It felt great to cool down and wipe off some sweat.  Then another volunteer handed me a bottle of water—another very welcome finishers gift!  I was so thirsty!  I was then handed a beautiful pink rose, and then a bottle of Muscle Milk.  Once I was out of the finish line, I stopped, looked around and just enjoyed the moment! 

Now the hard part was over and it was time to reunite with my family.  We got some snacks and took some pictures.  They had a lot of snacks to choose from—like bagels, apples, oranges, and watermelon.  After a whole bottle of water and some water melon, I met up with some new friends.  We then hit the race expo (I got some new Bondi Bands!)  After that, it was time for lunch with the family. 

I was very happy with how I did in my first race. The BWC was a good choice.  The other runners were very supportive, and it was nice to run in a women only race to get the hang of it.  It was a good learning experience of where to start, how to deal with crowds and how to pass other runners. The race goody bag and shirt are awesome!  I will post about that tomorrow!

My official chip time was 41:55. 

A dream is a wish your heart makes......

--Amy

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