Day 85: 2011 Monument 10K

Hooray! I finally get to participate in an event that I payed for. I had to miss the Richmond half and Shamrock half due to injuries. I didn't race my fastest but it was great just to be out there.

Race Nutrition

Race day for me started the night before. Last year I took nutrition for granted since I was just coming off doing a marathon. Several members from the team went to PF Chang's. I had the chicken noodle soup with extra noodles plus some white rice on the side. Had to carb load! I'm really happy with this meal as I didn't feel any stomach issues during the run.

Henry

When I got to the race we all met at the Cathedral for pictures. We went early because we wanted to cheer on one of our younger athletes in the Kid's Run. Henry is a 10 year old kid whose been working hard to finish his first mile race. What make's Henry unique is that he has cerebral palsy. Rusty described the disease as a "group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that causes physical disability in human development. With CP, your muscles become spastic and can tighten up for no apparent reason, making physical movement VERY difficult." In Henry's case he equated that running a mile would seem like running an ultramarathon for traditional runners.

I wanted to go out and support this young man for a couple of reasons. For one was because he gave a wonderful impromptu speech at our annual banquet. I'd try to describe it but I wouldn't do justice to his delivery. The second is a bit selfish, I just wanted to feel a little inspired prior to the race. I think that often we take some of the basic things we do daily for granted. I can't recall every mile that I've ran but I bet you Henry can. For these kind of reasons, you'll sometimes just see me smile or yell during a workout just to appreciate the experience.

The 10K

The run went really well. I paced a teammate and she ended up getting a PR. I was surprised at how my body responded. I had some hesitation as I was scared my legs weren't ready for that many miles at that speed but I felt strong. I'd even say that I probably had a couple of more miles in me at the end of the race.

I just love doing this event. For one it was my first endurance event in my adulthood so I figured I'd do it annually no matter what. Its also fun for the sheer amount of people. I think there were something around 41,000 people registered. That's nuts! There's a ton of support and fun games like the costume contest. Costumes were a little toned down this year and I think its probably because everyone was more worried about the game later in the day.

Once again, I'm just glad I got to go out there and experience it. This run got me really amped and I can't wait for my first race next weekend.