Medved 5k to Cure ALS 2012 Recap

On Saturday, the day before Father’s Day, Jeff and I decided we would spend Father’s Day morning racing a 5k. Even though Jeff has been on the west coast much of the last 2 weeks and hasn’t been running much in terms of quality, and I’ve been having a hard time adjusting back to east coast time since our Seattle trip, we decided an 8:30am start time would be fine. We both wanted to get some Rochester racing in before our summer move and we had our in-laws in town so we wanted to take advantage of both being able to race.

We did our pre-race run to the local running store and signed up to save $5 off race-day registration. Then, since our daughter didn’t nap and went to bed by 8:45pm, I was able to go to bed at a reasonable hour and was excited to get at least 7 hours of sleep.

Right as I was drifting off, I heard fire truck sirens. Lots of them! Getting louder! Then I saw the lights go by our house. Next, I started smelling smoke through our open windows. I stayed in bed for awhile, but Jeff went downstairs a few minutes later and I had to follow. The trucks were parked in front of our house! The were firefighters all over our street, searching for a fire with flashlights! This is a common theme in my racing life-something strange always happens the night before a race and I end up getting little sleep.

After all the commotion, I didn’t get to sleep until around midnight. At 3:45am our daughter woke up to use the potty and didn’t go back to sleep until it was time for me to get up for the race. For some reason, I didn’t feel too tired at the time. I went through my usual pre-race breakfast of a peanut butter sandwich, about 40 oz water and a cup of coffee and we left for the race about 70 minutes before the start.

It was a warm morning and about 65% humidity and we were joking about something just not being right in the air. Jeff and I both felt nauseous and sluggish on the warmup. I lined up about 6 rows back. Usually I line up in the first or second row in Rochester races because I’m usually top 20 overall. Today I sort of got pushed back. Jeff offered me a spot on the line but I didn’t take it.

The gun went off and I spent the first 400 meters dodging all the people who started ahead of me, plus a few random people who started behind, sprinted in front of me, then cut me off and slowed down. It was the strangest race start I’ve had in Rochester! I finally got out of the mess and joined the lead ladies after the first quarter mile. By the half mile point, I was already feeling out-of-my-groove and tired and was wondering where the mile marker was. Uh-oh! Usually I feel strong through the first 2 miles and the last mile is where I start to struggle, but can always keep it pretty consistent through the last mile because it’s just one more mile. Today, was a whole different story. Things just weren’t right from the beginning. I hit the one mile surprisingly fast, maybe 5:23, just like the Fremont 5k, but felt much worse. I knew I’d be slowing down. The next mile was 5:47. HELLO JEN… WHERE ARE YOU?!

I found myself mostly daydreaming, and trying to maintain 3rd place to win some money. I ended up 3rd woman, at 17:49. I was hoping to go around 17:05 so it was a little disappointing, but not too much. I really didn’t feel like I had it in me today for some reason so it was easier to handle mentally I guess. Jeff also got 3rd place so we both won $75. Nice little Father’s Day cash.

medved als 2012 finish

Struggling toward the finish

race awards

Getting my award, caught in awkward pose.

frontier field horse made from baseball mitts

Horse covered in baseball mitts!

 

6 thoughts on “Medved 5k to Cure ALS 2012 Recap

  1. Sometimes you just have those days when the body just won’t go like you want it to. Still a great time and the cash is a huge plus!! Congrats!

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