The first was Day One of my ill-fated run streak: The Turkey Trot in Appleton, WI.
I lined up for the five miler on Thanksgiving morning with my friends Matt, Brian, and Lori, and had no plans for the race.
I had been rushing around trying to get registered until just moments before the gun went off, and my buddies were teasing me about my lack of preparation. I sort of forgot to eat or drink anything in the morning, I didn't bring water to the race, my running clothes were a random cotton assortment of lounge-wear from the depths of my dresser, and I felt like I had no idea what I was doing.
I ran for a bit with Matt at an easy 10ish pace, and felt like I was holding myself back too much to have fun. I sped up a bit and my first mile was just over 9 minutes.
The course weaved through pretty neighborhoods with big old houses, and the crisp air and sunshine put me in such a good mood that I was consistently laying down miles in the 7:30-7:50s.
I crossed the finish line feeling great and actually sort of refreshed in 40:19, which was more than two and a half minutes faster than my PR.
Three days later, I drove to De Pere to run the Noodleini 15k thanks to the kind heart (and checkbook) of my sweet sister-in-law Kathy.
This race was pretty hard. The roads were covered with icy slush, the course is not very scenic, and it was a gray and dismal day. I'd never run that far on a slippery surface before, and that shit was difficult. Every time I pushed off to take a step, my back foot slipped back an inch or two, which made for pretty slow going.
I took my time, talked to a ton of other runners, and finished up in 1:20:44, a 26 minute PR. (The last 15k I ran was in 2007 dressed as a hobo with this girl)
Noodleini 15k
1:20:44
8:39 pace
So there you have it. Lesson of the day - PRs are equal parts lack of preparation and mild dehydration. I should write a running book filled with this gold.
Have you ever raced more than one race in a week?
Are you still streaking?
