I had no expectations for today's turkey trot. I haven't been running well the past few weeks. My last 5k was a struggle and I was having a hard getting myself motivated to run every day. Truthfully, my only goal for today's race was to have fun.
Everyone was in a festive mood. The local high school track and cross-country teams were sporting their colors and preparing for some friendly competition. Moms and dads were out with their children. A few were proudly wearing their 2009 Philadelphia Marathon shirts.
And then there was me, I was never on a high school track or cross-country team, I wasn't there with my daughter (she was still in bed when I left) and I wasn't sporting a recent marathon shirt. I was there simply because I'm a runner and runners should be trotting on Thanksgiving.
The horn went off a little after 9 and off I went with the masses. I definitely struggled with the hills and I couldn't find my finishing kick when I made the final turn towards the finish line. I crossed the line in 23:39 which is about a minute slower than my PR. But that's not important. What is important is that my splits were 7:40, 7:28, 7:28 which are the fastest miles, I've cranked out since my injury. Not that they felt effortless, but running at that speed didn't feel like a struggle. It's just good to know that my speed is finally on the way back.
Congrats to everyone who trotted today. I will write about my Thanksgiving meal in a separate post. I want to end by saying thank you for reading and for your continued support and encouragement. The running community on Facebook and Twitter is one of the many things that I am thankful for this year.
Update: The official results were recently posted, here you go:
Chip Time: 23:39
Pace: 7:43
Overall Place: 326/1779
Gender Place: 260/988
AG Place: 12/88
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