Valentine's 5k

I ran the Valentine's 5k because I really needed another race to jump start me into the training for this marathon.  Upcoming races always motivate me out onto the pavement and get those miles in.  The Valentine's 5k is put on by the UW Running Club.  The cost of the race was only $5, which of course meant no chipped time.

We picked up our race bib at the UW Natatorium.  There was quite a bit of last minute sign up, but we were able to keep nice and warm waiting inside.  We had a bit of a chilly walk to the actual race start which was about 500 meters down the road for the Nat.  While we waited, they warned us at the start that the roads would be mostly clear of ice, but that when there was ice, it'd be about a 4-5 foot stretch.  An audible groan arose from the crowd.  I expected such conditions, but I wasn't looking forward to it. On the walk to the start, I met Charlie who told me about running the same race a few years back, slipped on an ice patch and fractured his hip.  Eeek!

The race took us a bit on the Lakeshore Path and then we looped back.  It was chilly and windy and I never quite warmed up.  I never quite slipped or slid on the ice, but the chunks of ice led to very uneven roads.  There were a couple of times when I landed on the edge of one of these chunks wrong and my ankle bent the wrong way.  Luckily, I didn't twist the ankle.

I came in 30:15 or so.  The clock stopped at 29:15 when I came in so I have no idea what my actual time was but my friend Barry told me it was about a minute after.

All in all, it was well organized and we even got gloves with the $5 signup.  But, I don't know.  I didn't love it and I'm not sure I'll do it again in the future.  I signed up for the Get Lucky half marathon for mid-March in the Twin Cities.  I'm pretty pumped about this half marathon.  It'll motivate me to get into the training mode.  I'm planning for a double digit training run this week.