Back to Back Weekend Recap

This was quite the weekend at the beach! Normally being at the beach is all about being chill and relaxing. I do typically run while I’m at the beach (mostly because I long run on Saturdays) and occasionally I’ve even raced. But since I decided I really wanted to complete the Seashore Striders Summer Championship Series this summer, I needed to get a bit more serious about my running commitments at the beach!

To qualify for the Championship Series, I needed 5-5ks and 1-5 miler. I’ve had a couple of people ask me why in the world I would want to run any races in the summer, much less a series of 6 races. I think my motivation was two fold–first, I tend to be pretty lazy in the summer. All the heat makes me want to lay around and read novels (some trashy, some slightly less trashy). This has basically been my M.O. since I was about 10 years old, so I need strong motivation, like a race to keep me moving. This motivation will pay off in the fall, when I rock my fall racing calendar! Second, I find the local striders races to be really fun. They’re chill, I’m starting to get to know people, and it’s fun to get out there early in the morning and run with a group.

So this past weekend, I had not one but TWO races with the striders–a Saturday-Sunday double dip event! Both races were run in the early morning, and I think I actually learned a bit about myself and racing because of the challenge.

Saturday–Jungle Jim’s 5k Splash, Rehoboth Beach DE

The lure of the Jungle Jim’s 5k Splash was actually enough to earn me some company for the weekend–usuals Carlos and Eileen joined me for the weekend at the beach and for the race on Saturday morning. The morning was relatively warm and humid, but fortunately the course was mostly shaded and through a nice neighborhood behind Jungle Jim’s.

Carlos and I stuck together for the whole race and I finished in 27.40. My 5k PR from March was 27.12, so considering that it was 20+ degrees warmer and a much more humid, I was happy with my results! And then after we were done, I took a spin in the lazy river and went down a few water slides. We also hit up the Fractured Prune for some amazing hot hand dipped donuts. All in all, a pretty good morning.

What I learned from Saturday–mainly that humidity zaps my run. There were times during this race that I felt like I literally could NOT get enough air, which is not a fun feeling. Also, I had a wicked kick at the end of this run, which I think really helped awaken some fast twitch fibers. Of course I wouldn’t know that until Sunday morning.

Sunday–Bill Degnan Memorial 5k, Lewes, DE

I went to bed super early on Saturday night (I was exhausted from not sleeping enough on Friday) and woke up Sunday morning feeling refreshed and only slightly sore in my quads. Carlos and I arrived at Cape Henlopen High School nice and early, and we had plenty of time to stretch out and warm up on the track. The weather was nicer than Saturday–cooler temps, lower humidity, and just a touch of breeze. As we lined up for the start, Carlos and I were discussing how we were just going to take it nice and slow. We were probably at the back of the pack for our lap around the track before exiting the stadium and then circling the outside of the stadium. Somewhere around a half mile I realized Carlos and I had been separated in the crowd. I looked at my watch, realized my pacing was good, and decided to keep going. It was a good decision.

Around the 1 mile mark I caught up with a girl wearing a high school lacrosse jersey. I took measure of her pace and decided to stick with her for a while. Turns out, I ended up tailing her for the entire race until the last quarter mile when we hit the track, where she and I battled it out to the finish. When I saw the clock I could hardly believe my time–26.46! I was so happy, I actually found the girl and thanked her for pacing me during the race. She in turn thanked me, saying knowing she had someone on her heels kept her going the whole time.

When I looked at the race results print out I had an even bigger surprise–I placed second in my age group! Double accomplishment! And Carlos placed third in his age group! We were all smiles as we headed back to the BBC for a tasty breakfast!

What I learned from Sunday–this race reinforced how much weather matters. The temperature was only a few degrees cooler, but that lower humidity made a HUGE difference. I ran my slowest mile on Sunday at the same pace as my fastest mile on Saturday. It also proved, like the Maryland Half, how well a pacer works for me. Since I was able to focus on staying with someone instead of pacing myself, I could really focus on just running, which helped me put up negative splits. Finally, I saw the benefits of a familiar course, since the second half of this race was run on the last 1.5 miles from the Masser 5 Miler I ran in May. Thanks to that, I was able to visualize the course and exactly what I had to do, which I think helped me power through at the end when my body really would have liked to slow down. Also, I did some things on Saturday that I wouldn’t normally do before a race–eat junk, drink, shop–so it’s interesting to see in the end my willpower mattered more than just rest.

All in all, this was a great weekend at the beach. Good times, good races. I’m 1/2 of the way through the Summer Championship Series, and I’m ready to continue this Saturday!

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