Turkey Trot Recap

Going into this race I had to mentally prepare myself for less than ideal conditions. Back in Nashville it was 75 degrees (around what i'm used to) and in Ohio it was supposed to be 30s / 40s and pouring rain - makes you want to get up early and run 5 miles doesn't it?
Woke up at 6am, put on all my layers only to come to find out its 46 degrees and rising-hallelujah! Switch up game plan and opt for spandex capris with pants over to take off right before race and on top went with tank and running long sleeve spandex w/ a windbreaker to block the rain. Brother Eric came over at 7am so we could hit the road. He was kind enough to lend me one of his Adidas hats to help block the rain from my face. Somewhere between the time we left our house and the 25 minute drive to downtown Miamisburg the rain went from a 'downpour' to a 'drizzle', which obviously will make the run a little easier. Dad drops me, Eric, and mom off so we can walk to start line and warm up while he looks for parking; very sweet.
We have about 20 minutes to kill so there isn't much to do but stand around, stretch, and warm up- so thats what we did.

Despite being almost 8am bc its stormy out it looks super dark

Eric, me, and mom prior to the race

I feel like every time I come home I always run into someone I know. It was crazy to look around at all the runners and see people who I used to compete against back in highschool. We also ran into a family friend, Denny, who is big into running.

Eric, Denny, me- thought it was neat Eric and I had consecutive bib numbers- we must have registered simultaneously!

Since Denny is an avid distance runner I ask him what he's striving for and he tells me 40 min- sounds good to me. In all honesty, I just want to beat my brother, or should I say defend my win against last time we raced- 5k over labor day.

Feeling good and ready to rock it

Finally they call the runners over the megaphone to report to line up. Take my spot near the start line, few people behind Denny, and several people ahead of Eric. This is the first time I had someone sing the star spangled banner before the race while everyone looked up and ahead at a flag hoisted up by a crane. Finally the gun fires and everyone is off. Holy crap these people are fast! I'm getting passed left and right even though I feel that I'm going at a descent pace.
Within 400 meters I catch up to Denny and pace with him since we have a similar goal in mind. 1st mile was 7:20- I know as soon as I see the clock its too fast but lets just see how long I can last. Denny left me around 1.5 miles so I thought I was slowing down dramatically, however when I hit the 2 mile the clock was at 15:06, so a 7:46 2nd mile. Once we reach the turnaround I felt like a hit a brick wall and yet I'm only halfway done. I couldn't help but beat myself up on why I always insist on going out too fast only to significantly slow down my pace and be in pain. On the positive note as I was making my way back I kept my eyes focused on the runners on the opposite side of the road who had yet to reach the turnaround to see where Eric's position was. When I saw him I figured I was about 2 minutes ahead of him- perfect :)
Although my muscles felt great, it was just so hard for me to breathe. Once mile 3 hit- 23:40 I decided to walk for 30 sec so I could catch my breath. I ended up having to do this 2 more times before I even hit mile 4. In the distance I saw what I thought was the clock for the 4th mile marker, so I sped up a little bit, but soon realized that it was a gas station and the red numbers were the prices for the gas- darn. (apparently Eric thought the same thing when he reached this point so I didn't feel as dumb) Finally reach mile 4- 32 and change- if i can pick it up a bit I can hit somewhere in the 40 range. I always tell myself that no matter the race, walking in the last mile is NOT an option so that makes it that much harder.
At this point I'm drenched and I'm not sure if majority of it is rain or sweat. My hair is dripping wet from being hot with wearing a hat (first time ever in a race) and I want nothing more than to take off my top shirt to cool down, but that would take way too much energy- something I was lacking right now. I was getting frustrated because I couldn't remember what the start/finish line looked like, so I had no idea when I was getting close. I saw flashing police lights in the distance- looked to be about 400M so I started to pick it up a little. As I get closer I realize that is not the finish line, however I can finally see it in the distance- too far to pick it up quite yet.
Ugh I want nothing more than to be done and be dry. As I near the line I finally pick it up so I can just be finished. I wouldn't say I had a kick by any means, but it was enough to ensure I did infact get in the 40s- 40:36 official time.

 Once I crossed the finish line had to stand in a line to get my chip removed and returned- generally after a run the first thing I want is a drink before doing anything else- tough luck on this race. After I got my chip removed I had to walk a ways away only to stand in a huge line for 4 minutes just to get a bottle of water and a banana- really?!?! Its cold, I'm wet, and I'm thirsty. Being the good sister that I am I decide to pick up another water and banana for Eric so he doesn't have to suffer like I did.

Soaked and tired after the race.

Us with dad 

Us with mom 

If you were to ask me how I did in this race I would say I felt terrible. Placing wise though, not bad got 9th in my division out of 284, 730th overall out of 4648- plus I also beat Eric as he ran a 43:20. This may sound crazy, but I would much rather run a half marathon than another 5 mile race. I've been training for about 9 min. pace, so when I go faster than that, aka a 7:20 first mile, my pace and breathing are all off and my body punishes me. Looks like it may be awhile before I venture to run another 5 miler race.