New Turf

As you may have noticed, spring is an incredibly busy time for the Stath family.  Addison plays tennis on the jr high team, and she throws for the track team, so our time at home and my time to blog is rather limited.  Now that it is summer vacation, I hope to have time to write more.

This weekend, Gary, Addison, and I are in Virginia Beach visiting Gary's daughter and her family.  It has been a fabulous vacation.  We spent our first day hanging out by their pool; Friday we spent at the beach, and then at the Boardwalk browsing and eating.  Today we were registered to run a 5K.  We hadn't run a race since the half marathon in Louisville at the end of April.  I hadn't run a 5K in over a year.  Because it had turned so hot and humid so quickly, my running has been awful.  I have been slow and whiny for the past month.  We decided to run this race despite all of that, so Gary sent in our entries.

This morning, Gary, Tamara, Addison, and I took off for Virginia Wesleyen College.  Tamara had not been to a race, so we were excited for her to be there.  She and Addison hung out while we were out sweating.  The weather was actually pretty decent.  It was hot, but not unbearable.  As we were pulling into the university, a slight panic attack set in.  What was the cause of my anxiety?  We realized that we would be running on grass.  We had never run on grass.  Racing on an unfamiliar surface was not on my agenda for the day.  Would I twist an ankle on an uneven spot?  Slip on the dew-covered grass?  Run slower?  My heart was pounding and my stomach churning.  Why the heck did we sign up for this race?  In Indiana we run on streets.  One would assume that would be the norm.  One would be mistaken.

As is the norm for me, we arrived well ahead of the start time.  There were over 300 runners registered, so there was quite a crowd forming as we drove in.  I truly had no idea what to expect at this race, but I knew that all goals were no longer applicable.  This was new territory.  As we lined up, I just decided to go with the flow, and see what would happen.  I gave Gary a good-luck kiss, and lined up toward the front.  Why start out behind?  The Geico gecko got the runners to their marks (really), and we were off.  I took off fast, and as I do in most races, decided just to go hard as long as I could.  Who knew what was going to happen on the grass?  I might crash and burn before the end of the first mile.

Once I got into a groove, I found that I really didn't mind the green stuff.  It was rather cushiony for these middle-aged legs.  The course wound around the college campus, and was very peaceful.  I found that I was indeed able to maintain a decent pace.  As I was approaching the chute, there was a little boy, probably about eight or nine years old, ahead of me.  Now, sometimes my ego can get the best of me.  Did I really want this little kid to beat me?  Ugh.  I chose to be a grown-up, and when I saw him slow down at the end, I said, "Finish strong!  Keep pushing!"  He took off, and he finished just before I did.  As I neared the chute, I saw the timer, and I knew that my time was going to be respectable.  Heck, it was going to be good!  I heard Tamara and Addison yelling for me, and I pushed forward (although I really felt like puking).  My time was 27:01 - about a 8:42 pace, which is awesome for me.  And it was on a new turf, so it was super awesome!  I ended up placing 5th out of 29 in my age group.  Aah...a good day.

Gary had set a goal of running the race in 38 minutes.  He rocked too!  His time was 36:41 - well below his goal!  He ran under a 12 minute pace, which is great!

Not only did we run well, Gary also won 3 prizes in the raffle, one of which was a $50 gift card to a great restaurant/bakery.  Guess what we did after the race?  We used up that gift card!  We also made a second trip to the running store, and I treated myself to a new running skirt. 

So now that our race is over, we can continue vacationing.  This evening we went to Norfolk for the HarborFest, which was great.  We saw some really cool ships, had some treats, and watched an Indigo Girls concert.  Tomorrow we have a family cookout, and Monday we might head back to the beach.  I love the beach.  I don't really like getting in the ocean; I hate the taste of saltwater, and I don't really like tumbling in the waves.  I do, however, love lying on the beach, listening to the sound of the water, and reading a good book.  Oh, and I will be running the next two days, too.  It is really fun to run in new places.  Tamara lives in a beautiful neighborhood, so I can occupy my mind by looking at the gorgeous homes and meticulous lawns.  And I can dream about winning the lottery and purchasing a second home here in Virginia Beach.  One on the ocean.  In Sandbridge.  That's really large and has a pool.  A girl can dream, can't she?  Might as well dream big!

Thanks for reading...now get out and run!