Last Saturday, we took the family down to San Marcos to run in the Country Roads 10k. Jeana did this last year and I was jealous. The race had less than 150 runners in it and it was just a fun, low-key atmosphere. I got to run this year because Jeana is 20 weeks pregnant (well, now she is 21).

Audrey (#190) and I ran the kids run together, and Jeana went with Kate. Audrey did this same race last year but she was slightly sick and had to be carried for some of the race. This year, she sped off from the start line and didn’t stop to walk for a long time. It didn’t take long for her friend, Drew, to pull away from her (just like his dad did with me). Audrey kept asking, “Where’s Drew?” I had to explain that he was a much faster and better trained runner because he has practiced running with his dad. Audrey said she felt like we should practice running now instead of riding bikes. I reminded her that we need to practice running, riding, and swimming so she can be ready for a triathlon.

Audrey’s finish was so awesome. We rounded the last bend and I told her that she was going to run the last stretch by herself. Tons of spectators saw her coming in and started cheering so loud. It was a proud moment for me. After she came through the finish chute and got some water, all the spectators were chatting with her and talking to her about the race, how old she is, and her medal.

Kate (#191) was the youngest runner in the kids race. She did about as good as you can expect a 2 year old to do. I hesitate to say 2 year old because she’ll be 3 in 2 months. Regardless, she falls in the 2 year old date range at present. After I finished with Audrey, I ran up the race route in the reverse direction to find Kate - really I thought I would need to help carry Kate. When I found Kate and Jeana they weren’t far from the end of the race. We chased our shadows and especially Kate’s shadow to get her to run. She finished the race and got her third race medal!

Audrey was lucky and even won a prize drawing after the race. Here prize was a set of paddles for paddle ball. She got a set of them in her race packet, so she gave her prize to Drew. Drew also won a prize of a game set (like checkers, chess, etc).

I got a personal record, 46:56. That means 7 minutes and 33 seconds per mile. I ranked 6th in the 30-39 age group and ranked 24th overall (out of 136). I’ll spare you the play-by-play, except for three things.

First, I started the race with Chris, who said that he would start with an 8 minute mile pace. I was happy with that since I hadn’t trained for this race like I should have. When we reached the first mile marker, my watch read 6:46. I can’t think of a time in my life when I have run a mile that fast. Thanks “Mr. I Keep a Good Pace”.

Second, after I fell back and let Chris run ahead at his light-speed pace, I took comfort in an aged, shirtless gentleman. He ran by my side (through thick and thin), behind me, and in front of me. At one point I swear he was drafting. Finally, he came up by my side again and since I’m a talkative and friendly runner, I looked over at him and said, “It’s sure nice to have company.” To which he replied, um well, nothing. Nada. He just stared straight ahead as if I didn’t exist. I was snubbed. We had stuck together for a couple miles, and now he treated me like I was dross. In the end, he finished 11th overall (right after Chris). He smoked me, so I can’t talk anymore trash than that. I did find a picture of him, and was tempted to post it here, but I’ll respect his privacy and refrain from showing his face to the world.

Third, I finished strong. I wanted to sprint the last stretch just to overcome my misery from the Round Rock 10k in June. For the last mile and a half of that race I kept asking myself, “Why am I doing this? I will never run a race again.” At the 6 mile marker I picked up the pace and as I rounded the last corner to where I could see the finish line I started sprinting. I passed a guy that had just passed me not too much earlier and I was proud of myself because I felt like I had a good burst of speed to finish on. Plus, it kept my time under 47 minutes!

Thanks to Hill Country Rambling for taking the photos.