onepinkfuzzy

This year, I did not run the race with Paki; I ran it with my friend Melissa. (Paki was unable to make it.) Melissa has run for years, but wasn't sure about racing 5 miles. She did fantastic, coming in at about 45 minutes. This race has a fun course wandering all around the UA campus and neighboring streets.

Ash and C played frisbee while I prepped for my run. Coming off a nasty cold and a late Saturday night (C, Ash and I drove up to Phx for a friend's birthday bbq), I had no expectations for this race. I just wanted to run and have fun!

Ash hurried Melissa and I into the starting line, and 15 seconds after the announcer told us we had a minute to go, the starting gun went off. Melissa quickly wove her way through the packed runners and I settled into a nice groove, laughing at the three-legged dog in front of me (I wonder if he ran the whole thing?).

First two miles passed quickly, and unlike last year, they had both water and cups at the first aid station. C and Ash finished up in the jumping castle quick enough to make it to the 2-mile spot and snap a photo of me passing by after I spent most of my energy getting the UA cheerleaders to actually cheer as I passed by.

C and Ash had a lot of fun hanging out while I finished up the last three miles. I got the load of frat boys in front of their house to not only raise a raucus for me, but also give me tons of high fives. I didn't have to walk other than the water stops (the second one, unlike last year, had both water and cups as well), and the folks out on the course making sure we stayed on track were much friendlier than last year and gave lots of encouragement.

It was much cooler than last year, making for a more comfortable run. After running this three years in a row, I'm familiar with the course and know when to anticipate hills, heat, and the nearing of the finish line. I had a little left in me for a small kick at the end, but nausea was setting in. Melissa, C and Ash gave me awesome screams and cheers as I rolled through the finish line.

I finished in 56:46, and at first, I thought I set a PR by about a minute, and was quite excited! Later research revealed I ran one minute faster than my first Run'n'Roll, but one minute slower than last year (my PR). Not bad for being sick! The rest of the day was tough - the nausea that started in the last mile increased, and I was pretty miserable for a good six to eight hours while my insides figured themselves out. I had a lot of fun at this race, though, and am looking forward to next year!

(On an unrelated note, my boyfriend finally got me to eat fish. Amazing. I don't eat fish. I hate fish. Fish is gross. But not only did C make me fish last night, but I ate it. All of it. And enjoyed it. Wow.)