BRATS Frozen 5k

BRRRRR!  I'm still a bit chilly as I write this!  While the weather, in the thirties, was warmer than previous years it was still a brisk start to the BRATS Frozen 5k in Manassas yesterday. With promises of breakfast wafting through her sweet head, my dear friend Jen was willing to be picked up at 6:30 am and driven out to the wilds of VA. I also had the pleasure of meeting up with fellow a fellow Tough Chik, Erica, at packet pickup. I love making new friends with fellow runners and I'm looking forward to meeting more of my team.

We begrudgingly left the comfort of my warm car and did a warm up lap around the parking lot of the race area.There were a lot of kids with race numbers, which I found fun at the time. I like small races in general. For one thing, the race fees are usually lower. Can't go wrong there. It wasn't too long before they called us to the line and after a rendition of the national anthem it was a simple 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and GO. The course was flat with several out and back segments along the way.

It was 34 degrees when we started but it didn't take long to warm up. The first mile was ok, about 8:25 and I wasn't experiencing much pain in my leg. The second mile was a little slower, about 8:31 and I was just not settling into a groove. My legs were tight and my breathing was irregular. I was definitely anxious to see the three mile mark. Remember those kids I thought were fun? Not so much. Apparently in Manassas children are born to run. Seriously. I have never seen such a large and speedy group of kids racing before in my life.

One was being led by his mother who kept yelling out how close he was to beating his PR. He looked about 8. And he passed me.  Before I got to the finish a 9 year old girl came flying in and the announcer made sure to tell everyone who came in right after her that they got owned by her. At any rate, the third mile was my fastest, about 8:15, but not as fast as I'd hoped for. I was just done, I had no kick in me whatsoever. My finish was 25:59. About a minute and twenty seconds slower than the PR I set less than two months before.

Because the race was small, I did get 5th place in my age group, which I'm happy about. Jen smoked us all and came in second female overall in 20:15. She got a cute plaque with a racing snowman on it. We hung out for the awards but as soon as they were done we flew to the car and gunned it back down 66 to breakfast. One giant egg quesadilla and 2 cups of coffee later, I was in better spirits. All in all, I didn't do too badly and my leg held up. I have another 5k in February and I'm looking forward to having a better base to work from.

Did you race this weekend?  How did it go?  I know several bloggers were running at Disney (so jealous) and I can't wait to see those race reports.  Happy Monday, everyone!