Time to Fly 2009 10k

Writing race reports is fun once you get going....but they can be draining as well. I think I get long winded when it comes to telling the story of the race and everything that went with it, but thats how you get the feeling (as the reader) that you are right there with me....right!?

Time to Fly, Harriet Island in St. Paul...supporting Children's Cancer Research, and the local community! Great place for a race, great reason to run/walk/jog!

The kiddos slept at Grandpas and Grandmas house the night prior to the race mostly because I had to get up too early to race my 10k and its no fun as a kid to have to get up so early so their Dad (who is a kid at heart) can go run around like a crazy man. So, I drove down to the race solo for my race and the kids and G-parents were gonna come down a bit later so Kyle (my son who is 8) could run his first race...a 1k.

7:30am race start for the 10k. It was an out and back course along the river road...there were some serious runners there today. It was rainy and humid, but cool. The rain subsided for a bit at the beginning of the race, but soon was back after about mile 2. It made for an interesting first half of the race. I was pacing this guy and gal...they seemed a bit stronger than me today...but soon he fell off a bit, right around the turnaround. She was not letting up, so I just kept her in my sights and the dude dipped behind me and was 'drafting' me like an SOB! This all happened around mile marker 4, so I had a bit to go and I could not handle this guy literally breathing down my neck. He said to me "I'm gonna dip behind you and see how long I can hold on!" I turned around and said "Well, hold on tight...!" And thats when I felt my legs again, took a deep breath and up'ed the pace to about a 6:30. I never saw or heard from him again. The last 1.2 miles went by so fast and I could see the finish area from atop the hill, loosened my stride for the downhill and picked up good speed...I never did catch the gal ahead of me, but I was not about to let anyone pass me at this point, and I didn't. It was a great race, a bit painful mentally for the first 3 miles, but I came through for myself. 24th out of over 500 runners and a 6:55 pace (not my best day but I'll take it). Need to work on mental strength and confidence to "get it done". Knowing I have alot to spare at the finish....should harness and channel that for the whole race not just the end. In time.

So I was done now and just trying to stay dry. Grabbed some goodies to munch on and just sat around waiting for my kiddos and my Dad and his wife to show up. Just a few minutes later they made it. Kyle was sporting is running tank, running shorts and a new hair do (MOHAWK). He looked the part, now we were gonna see what he was made of. Over 100 kids were going to do this little race and it was cool to see all the smiling faces. Got the kids all lined up, race director Mark Bongers gave them the run-down on what to do and where to go and they were off. Now a 1k is not long, but these youngsters came off the start line like a shotgun blast...I wondered if they would be able to hold that tremendous pace for .6 miles. As they rounded the course I could see Kyle heading back toward the finish. his shoes were untied (?) and he was running kind of funny (gets that from his Mom I think)...as he got closer, maybe about one tenth to go, I ran up to him and told him he was almost done and he needed to sprint as hard as he could....so he did and he finished in under 6 minutes!! Very good job. He had a blast...

After Kyle got his medal and race bag of goodies, we headed over to get some food and beverage. We hung out a bit longer to play some games and take in all the race day had to offer. It was still pretty early in the morning and the G-parents had to head out...so we decided to go as well. It was a fun morning and now we were heading home to get some lunch and hang out for the weekend.

Cheers to all the kids out there who are fighting cancer and hopefully winning. And to all the families that are affected by this cruel disease. Our hats are off to you and you are in our prayers.

Looking forward to next year...Good job Final Stretch Inc. Another great race!

Bish