Race Reviews - Blast from the Past

I've been pretty terrible about posting my race reviews this winter and plan on spending the week catching up. So far I have posted on BibRave 2 of the 5 that I have yet to get to and hope to have the remainder done soon. Feel free to swing over there to see recaps of November's Insane Inflatable 5K, December's Reindeer Romp 5K, (which are already posted) and December's Santa Run 8K (which will be posted by tomorrow). I will also be posting reviews there of the Baxter Trail Club New Years Day Gnome Run 5K and Joe Davis Run for Recovery 10K, but will go into a bit more detail on these two races, both from this month, below.

Let me preface this with that there is going to be a fair amount of whining about cold weather in these reviews. Yes, I know it is winter, yes, I know winter is supposed to be cold, but ya'll, I live in SC and it is not usually THIS cold here, especially this early and for this long. We typically get one really really cold snap in February and everything else is fairly mild. I've done Christmas Eve and New Years runs in shorts before. One year I even went searching for a a Christmas themed tank for a Christmas Eve run. But this winter, HOLY FROZEN SNOWBALLS it's been cold!!!

I actually don't look like I'm dying here

For the Baxter Trail Club New Years Day Gnome Run 5K, which starts at 11 am, the temperature at the start was a balmy 25 degrees. And since this race was on trails which means in the woods which means trees which means no shade, it never really warmed up over the course of the run. I could have been worse, I had a few friends that were tackling the 18K distance (no thank you), so I couldn't complain too hard. I had on fleece lined tights, a thermal shirt, a lined coat, head band, hat, knee high socks and fleece gloves. While all this gear kept me pretty warm during, I do wish I had a 2nd pair of sock on. We were able to wait inside the Baxter Village Community Center prior to the race which was nice and outside there were several warming lamps and fire pits set up. The race was on trails which were pretty technical in some places, up hills, across roads, gravel areas and wooden bridges. I've run more on these trails over the past year, so I almost know where I am going. Almost. 

Goal Accomplished!!

I came into the race with a specific goal in mind. I was going to place. I had come in 4th the last 2 years in a row, and darn it, this year I was going to place! Well, if you read my previous post, you know I DID!! Despite the fact that I took a wrong turn up a hill at one point (oops) I still managed to get a 3rd placing. Although I checked the times and I only missed 2nd by 6 seconds!!!!! so that wrong turn dearly cost me as it added on about 30 seconds to my time. I know who it was that just beat me and yes, she totally passed me when I went the wrong way. I thought she might be in my age group so I tried my darnest to catch back up to her, but alas, I couldn't quite do it. At least I have a goal for next year. 

After the race we were treated to yummy food from Legal Remedy Brewing (traditional NYD  fair, BBQ, greens, pinto beans and corn bread) and my friend Nick had his coffee stand our giving out free coffee which was sorely needed. Legal Remedy and The Grapevine were also giving out beer and wine respectively. Immediately after the race I changed into drier clothes knowing the cold would hit me as soon as I stopped moving and settled in to eat and wait for the awards. My 3rd placing scored me an adorable race pint glass and I even won a door prize bottle of wine. Love this race  and will sure do it again, I just hope that it is above freezing next year.

Could I be wearing any more clothes?

Just 6 days later I had my next race, the Joe Davis Run for Recover 10K. And guess what... IT WAS EVEN COLDER! It was 13 degrees at the start of the race. 13!! That is the coldest I've ever run in, let alone raced in. But hey, never quit, right? So I showed up promptly 30 min before race time and sought out my friends to have a pre-race session of what the heck is wrong with us that we are here in this weather. Last year my Joe Davis goal was to qualify for the Fleet Feet Sports Racing Team (which I did). This year my goal was to not freeze to death. All thoughts of PRing this were gone as I could barely move in the amount of clothing I was wearing. My outfit consisted of a pair of tights under a pair of wool leggings, a thick pair of socks under knee high compression socks, a thermal under a lined jacket with a vest on top, fleece headband with a fleece beanie covering, knit gloves with fleece gloves over them and a neck gaiter to cover my face. All in all, it was about 5 lbs of clothing I think. 

The course for the race starts in Walter Elisha park in downtown Fort Mill, an area that is surprisingly hill. The race has both a 5K and a 10K where the 10K is simply the 5K route run twice. There is a fair amount of weaving in and out of the park before you hit a concrete trail though the woods and then weave around the surrounding neighborhood before coming back to the park. There is a lot of uphill climb in the last mile with one really big hill close to the end, but I train in Fort Mill primarily, so I'm no stranger to the terrain. And with the course being a loop, I had actually warmed up a bit and after the first lap, tossed my vest and fleece gloves in a bush to recover after. This course is actually my 10K PR, but like I said, not this year. And truth be told, I was only 2 minutes slower even with the cold and layers. I felt a lot better than I expected while running it and even got talked into tacking on 2 more miles with a friend after. I mean it HAD warmed up to 18 degrees by then. Why not?


So what's next? I have a few weeks off before I my next 2 back to back races Feb. 4th and Feb. 10th - both of which are Hot Chocolate 15Ks. I can't wait to run these and get me a sweet finisher's mug at the finish line. Want to join me? You can register at hotchocolate15k.com and also get a free Hot Chocolate Hat for Atlanta use code - BRHCATL18 and for Charlotte use code BIBRAVEHCCHAR18. I received entry in the Atlanta race as a BibRave Pro. I'm pretty excited as me and my girl Barking Mad About Running are road tripping it!


After that, it is Half Marathon time - March 18th at the Tobacco Road Marathon and Half Marathon. This will be my first year running this race and I'm pretty excited. You can join me by registering at http://www.tobaccoroadmarathon.com/ and using the discount code BIBRAVE1 to save $20 off your registration. I received an entry to this race as a BibRave Pro.

So what is next up on your race calendar? Tell me in the comments.