Or at least, back on the road. Back in December was my first long race in a very long while, the Jingle Bun Run half marathon. Last time I ran a half marathon was before we moved to Texas, so over a year and a half previously - yikes! And as life settles down, I'm needing my Big Race Motivation again. This is a local half, so not too expensive. A good way to get back on the horse, right?
So why am I writing about it now? Because my race shirt finally came in the mail!
I had done race day registration, since up until the last I wasn't quite sure that I'd feel up to it. Texas weather bounces around something crazy, and it tends to make my knee ache. No need to be running 13 miles when I'm hobbling about. But, with this being a tiny local race, they had race day registration, so I could make my decision as late as possible. That also meant that they were out of my size shirt on race day, so mine had to be mailed to me. But it came!
Mom always laughs that I take wonderful race pictures. I have to say, mile 11 in a half marathon does seem to work well for me. Mile 13, a little rougher :) Still, I could see my time and could see the finish line, so the big grin is very genuine!
We totally lucked out with the weather for the race, too. 60, overcast, lightly misting at times... perfect for running 2+ hours! The following week was sunny (and Texas KNOWS sunny) and about 10 degrees warmer. I definitely don't think I'd have done nearly as well with weather like that!
Another bonus to this race was that the race photos were free! The photo company took the pictures and then uploaded them to a set on Flickr. Maybe because it was a relatively small race, or maybe because it was the Christmas season, but the photos weren't barred or blocked or whatever, so any of the runners could download pictures in which they spotted themselves! Flip side to free pictures meant that you had to look yourself up (they tagged race numbers in the pictures, but didn't match them to names) and they were only at one point on the course, plus start and finish. But those are VERY small prices to have free race pictures! Thank you PhotoWolfe!
Mom always laughs that I take wonderful race pictures. I have to say, mile 11 in a half marathon does seem to work well for me. Mile 13, a little rougher :) Still, I could see my time and could see the finish line, so the big grin is very genuine!
We totally lucked out with the weather for the race, too. 60, overcast, lightly misting at times... perfect for running 2+ hours! The following week was sunny (and Texas KNOWS sunny) and about 10 degrees warmer. I definitely don't think I'd have done nearly as well with weather like that!
Another bonus to this race was that the race photos were free! The photo company took the pictures and then uploaded them to a set on Flickr. Maybe because it was a relatively small race, or maybe because it was the Christmas season, but the photos weren't barred or blocked or whatever, so any of the runners could download pictures in which they spotted themselves! Flip side to free pictures meant that you had to look yourself up (they tagged race numbers in the pictures, but didn't match them to names) and they were only at one point on the course, plus start and finish. But those are VERY small prices to have free race pictures! Thank you PhotoWolfe!
And the most exciting thing about this race (and why I'm so excited to
have the shirt to wear and brag) is that I dropped TONS of time! About 9
minutes, in fact! So, a race that I wasn't sure I'd even feel up to
running, was one where I dropped tons of time!! The course was twice
around a loop course. I had never done a race like that, and was
worried that it would make the race seem longer, kinda a "Oh, we're only
here" sort of feeling. I think it went quicker mentally though,
because I knew what was coming, knew how much further I needed to go.
Broke a long race into smaller mental pieces, I guess. So great weather, quick-feeling course... whatever the reason though, I had a great race!
A final silly side note, I did prepare a costume for this race. I've run short races (5Ks) in costume, but this was the first long race I'd considered it! Just a small one (see below): bunny ears in a Santa hat, plus a bunny tail! Being a bunny person, every time I saw "Jingle Bun," I thought "bunnies." It comes, of course, from the sponsor (Schlotzky's), meaning sandwich buns! Anyway, I figured I'd be a Jingle Bun! Just cut slits in a cheap Santa hat to feed the ears of a bunny headband through. I ended up not wearing them, though they were waiting in the car for me. It was kinda misty and felt almost muggy once we got underway and started warming up, and I didn't want a bedraggled bunny tail. Still wore my striped knee socks (toe socks!) though. :) Next year I'll be a Jingle Bun, maybe!
A final silly side note, I did prepare a costume for this race. I've run short races (5Ks) in costume, but this was the first long race I'd considered it! Just a small one (see below): bunny ears in a Santa hat, plus a bunny tail! Being a bunny person, every time I saw "Jingle Bun," I thought "bunnies." It comes, of course, from the sponsor (Schlotzky's), meaning sandwich buns! Anyway, I figured I'd be a Jingle Bun! Just cut slits in a cheap Santa hat to feed the ears of a bunny headband through. I ended up not wearing them, though they were waiting in the car for me. It was kinda misty and felt almost muggy once we got underway and started warming up, and I didn't want a bedraggled bunny tail. Still wore my striped knee socks (toe socks!) though. :) Next year I'll be a Jingle Bun, maybe!
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