When I woke up to snow this morning, my first thought was “This is why you train in all kinds of weather – a treadmill can’t prepare you for this!” My Hubs J and I quickly got ready, packed our gear, grabbed a bite and once the boys were settled in with grandparents we headed out to make the drive to the Cape.
As we got into Hyannis, we decided to avoid the madness of trying to find parking close to the race start and instead opted for a lot about a quarter mile away – gave us a nice little trot, warm up. The lines at the porta-potties were crazy and slow but everyone around us at least was in good humor and we made the best of it. We made it to the start with no time to spare and were off.
For those of you who are not familiar with Cape Cod, to say Cape roads are narrow is a understatement! So narrow roads and slippery conditions thanks to the snow falling made for a little bit of a chaotic start. As we had planned, J and I ran the first mile together and then we separated — his goal was to finish in just under an hour. I was feeling pretty good at this point, there were some twinges in my left knee but nothing indicating the trouble to come. As the course turned along the water, I was still feeling good about reaching my goal of a PR. But then the dark mile came…the twinges in my left knee grew a lot more intense. I backed off and then tried to walk, but it actually felt worse to walk (does that make any sense?!?) so I started to run again. The mile markers were non-existent so I chatted with a couple of different runners who spotted my Garmin and asked for an update.
As I reached 5.5 miles, I decided to try to push for a strong finish. There was a great crowd at the end and I heard J cheering as I turned for the finishers chute. My brother had brought my oldest down to see the end of the race, so it was really great to see them both there!
Despite the snow and angry knee, it felt great to be back in a race. It was a great group of runners, scenic course, and a lot of fun to run with J in his first 10k! (For the record: J did hit his goal – I’m so proud of him! And I missed matching my previous 10k time by only 40 seconds!)
Congrats on a strong race and pushing through despite not great conditions! Treat your knee well and I hope it feels better soon!
Awesome for finishing strong!
Now, go nurse and baby that knee so you can get back into another race and crush your previous 10K time!
Way to Go! Start Strong Finish Strong!
I wonder the same thing about pain, and when you walk it hurts worse. Good Question
Now Ice Ice Baby!
Congrats on your race. I hope your knee starts behaving for you soon. Isn’t it a great feeling having your family greet you at the finish line!
what a fun place to race! Sorry the knee flared up, however. Take it from me–take a few days of rest and let it get back to where it needs to be.
Great job on the race today!! Sorry your knee is still acting up hope it gets better soon!
Great job!! I was at the starting line cheering everyone on!!! I kept saying “Boy these conditions are not great!” Way to stick it out! I noticed the same thing last year when I ran the half. The mile markers were more for the marathon and I didn’t have a Garmin. I ended up coming in 1 minute behind my goal and I couldn’t help but think if I had known how far I had to go I would have made it!
I love the photo! Great form…You look like a professional!!!
Great race and a strong finish. Hope your knee is better.
a
freaking
10k
in
the
snow.
you. are. amazing.
you will never see me doing that.
you.
rock.
Love the photo!!
Bummer about the knee. You had a PR for great attitude. And, you look super cool in your pic. I like the sleep black look with a bit of lime green. You get a PR for fashion too 🙂
Uh oh, did The Manly Runner just talk about fashion. Don’t tell anyone.
Nice job on an awesome race. That’s a great hard core picture, too! And how fun that your son got to watch you finish. That’s priceless.
Thanks for your comment on my blog. How did you know when your pneumonia cleared up? That’s what I’m struggling with the most!