Glow Run 5k ~ Harrisburg, PA

Saturday night I ran my first ever night run - the Glow Run 5k in Harrisburg. This was a first year event benefiting a fund through Historic Harrisburg that replaces lights throughout the city. To me a good cause since I work in Harrisburg.

I had the great pleasure of running with my co-worker. We always say we should run together, but we live in opposite directions from Harrisburg and it's hard to find a race that works for both of us. So, this was perfect.

The race started at 8:30 p.m., so we met in front of the office at 7:45 p.m. This gave us plenty of time to find the race start and just chill out. We found the start and the sun was just beginning to set. It was gorgeous!

It was beautiful as we ran across the bridge, as you saw the sun setting over the Susquehanna River. I didn't take any photos during the race because at the beginning it was crowded and during the race I was just chatting the whole time.

But, we started off over the Walnut Street bridge to City Island. The sunset was beautiful! Perfect time of night to set off. We then wound our way around City Island. As we went past the baseball stadium we heard a "Go Mom!" We ignored it at first, then we realized it was my co-worker's son who was at the game! How fun!!

We made our way around City Island and back to the bridge. We crossed the bridge, then headed off to Shipoke. It was a fine run. We did a bit of walking mixed into our running as we both are coming back from injury. All in all we ran 2 of the 3.1 miles. Not bad.

We headed back to the finish line and got held up by traffic. The course wasn't closed and just our luck, the baseball game was ending. We lost a few minutes here before we could cross and finish. But we finished and grabbed our water.

We crossed this bridge when there was light. 

A bit dark after the race.

After the race, we all headed over to a bar on 2nd Street. We received one free beer post-race as part of our registration fees. We were a little nervous when we were handed this...

I have to say though, it was really good! I was shocked. I'm not a fan of Coors Light, then again, I'm not a big fan of any of those beers {Bud, Coors, Michelob, etc.}. My co-worker/friend sipped first, held her opinion. I tried it. Looking at her we both shared our shock at how tasty it was. There is a nice lemon/lime/citrus taste to it. Very easy to drink. A pretty good summer beer honestly.

We spent about an hour and a half drinking our beer, chatting, people watching, and just enjoying ourselves. We had a nice show from a woman who decided no matter what the song, she was dancing! Her significant other wasn't as into it, which made it oh so much more fun to watch!

I had a great time at this race. There are only a couple things I would say to improve it:

1. Schedule it on a night when the Senators are not at home. It was a bit crowded on City Island with fans/cars/runners/etc. and having to stop for traffic was frustrating.

2. Post-race snack. There were just a couple coolers with water. Before sending people to a bar for alcohol, add in some pretzels/bagels/bananas/etc. Better safe than sorry.

Other than that, the race was fun! We weren't even at mile 1 when we said we should do this race again! They did that great a job. If you're in the Harrisburg area next June, check it out. I think you will enjoy yourself. Plus it's very kid friendly. There were lots of kids and people with strollers running.

Have you run a night race before? Ever run a Glow Run?
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So many races...

There are so many races I want to run in the next 6-7 weeks {end of June}. Problem? Sprained ankle and finances. Why???

Freedom 5k - Harrisburg

Run for Bullies 5k - York {same date as below}

Glow in the Park 5k - Harrisburg {same date as above}

Baltimore Women's Classic 5k - Baltimore

Summer Luau 5k/10k - York {same weekend as below - Sat.}

Freedom 5k - Philadelphia {same weekend as above - Sun.}

Oh and I think I want to run this one - The Philly 10k. The problem is I hate running over the summer. But, maybe my three times a week on the treadmill could be extended past the end of June?

Are you having trouble deciding which races you want to run this spring? What fun races are near you?

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Motivational Monday

I figure most of my readers are either runners or at least know that I run. I'm not the best runner in the world (I freely admit this and I'm not putting myself down at all by saying it.), but I do appreciate good running and what it takes to be a fast runner. In Boston today, the 2014 Boston Marathon happened (actually there are still lots of fantastic people still running as I type this!).

I couldn't find the marathon on t.v., but did find it on-line and I watched the men and women cross the finish line today. Watching these elites of the sport finish the race is awe inspiring. How quickly these runners go, the condition of their bodies, their dedication to the sport is incredible. The fact that the top four women beat the course record is insane! How impressive is that??!!??

The photo for today's Motivational Monday is of Meb Keflezighi crossing the finish line - the first American male since 1983 to do so. I admire Meb for many reasons - he is my age, he runs with heart, he is humble, he is dedicated, he is kind. According to post-race interviews, he was at the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon and left the stands about 5 minutes before the bombing. He decided then that he would run Boston in 2014 and hopefully win. Today, when he ran, he had the names of the four people who died in the blasts on his bib.

What I am taking from today's race is never to count yourself out. Meb didn't. He is almost 39 years old. He decided he wanted to win this race for the people of Boston. When he crossed the line his face was sheer joy. When he stood on the podium holding the trophy with the National Anthem playing he cried. This is what following your dream and succeeding does to a person.

And don't count out the other 36,000 runners today. These people are just as amazing. These people, who will never get the recognition the elites receive, have trained their butts off! They sacrificed much to qualify to run Boston and are running their hearts out today. They are also oh so motivational because they do this for themselves, their family, and for reasons that reflect 36,000 people.

So today, be motivated by the elites and the 36,000 people who lined up in Boston to run their hearts out and prove to the world that the acts of last year's race will not stop runners from toeing the line. If they can do it, so can we!
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Half Marathon #7 Scheduled

The past few months have been pretty bad in terms of running. I haven't been out on the streets much, even when I had a race. But, I ran the KidsPeace Trick-or-Trot 5k Saturday and had fun. It was the first time I've run in awhile where I had fun.

And since I had fun, I signed up for The Love Run! I've been looking at this race for a few months and wanted to sign up. Hubby isn't running Shamrock again, so I didn't want to make us drive back to Virginia Beach for me. The Love Run is in Philly and since I had to skip the Philadelphia Half Marathon in November, this gives me the chance to run in Philly in March in a first time race.

I'm really excited! And I'm in need of a good race, so I know I need to:

lose weight

strengthen my core

add flexibility

gain stamina

build muscle

I started using My Fitness Pal to keep track of my food and exercise. The past two days have gone well. I've tracked both in the program and it's interesting seeing the stat of "if you ate like this everyday you would be x pounds in 5 weeks." I like that, Right now it's saying I'll be about 10 pounds lighter. I'll take that.

So, I'm committing to all the above to run a strong and happy The Love Run Half Marathon. I want to finish that race (hopefully with a PR) like I did at the end of the Shamrock Half Marathon in March 2012. I had a 25 minute PR, but more than that I felt like I could run for another 2-3 miles. I felt good. I felt exhilarated. I was happy. I want that again (and the 25 minute PR wouldn't be turned down!). 

I've got five full months to get myself in tip top shape. I can do it. I'm looking forward to it.

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Zooma Annapolis Race Recap

Super long post. You may want to read in spurts.

Well, it's done. Yesterday was Zooma Annapolis Half Marathon day. It was not the experience I anticipated. Why? Oh...let me tell you.

Hubby and I left the house about 12:20 p.m., which was a little later than we anticipated, but not too bad. On our way down though, there was a truck in the lane next to us that caught on fire. We had NO idea how to tell the person. We were on a highway, how do you get someone's attention going 75 mph? Several people tried too, but couldn't. Eventually, the truck pulled over and all three people got out. There was a pretty high fireball, but it didn't explode. It was scary. I don't think my heart beat calmed down til we hit Annapolis.

We got to the hotel for packet pick-up about 2:20 p.m. We pulled into the Lowes, which I have stayed at before and parked. We were charged $5 to park in their lot, which wasn't great, but I'm sure a public lot would have been much more. We headed in and got in line for bib/swag. The lines took forever because people we picking up for others...not just one other, but multiple people. I saw someone walk out with 7 bags. Ugh. I got mine, which included my shirt, bag, and bib. I wondered why I didn't get the yoga mat and water bottle they promised. This upset me a bit.

I then wandered the expo and picked up a few things. I grabbed a Zooma 3/4 zip jacket and a purple shirt that I had seen before and wanted. Pricey. But, what isn't at an expo?

I also grabbed a shirt, card, and flower at Fellow Flowers, a great inspirational company that I've been told has been up a year and doing amazingly well! Their stuff was very reasonable. I also wore the flower in my hair the next morning. I liked the people at the booth and they had some really nice stuff.

After the expo, we wandered a bit to find a bite to eat. We hadn't eaten since breakfast and wanted something. Stopped at Fado's and had a yummy cider and this:

A yummy cheese dip with boxy chips! They were amazing! When the waitress saw we had more cheese, but no chips? She brought us out a whole new plate of chips! Yum!

We headed back to the Lowe's to get our car so we could check into our hotel. It was uneventful trip, other than Garmin getting us lost (what's new? Garmin doesn't like us.). Check in was quick. We got into the room, I laid out my gear for Saturday morning, and we watched A Knight's Tale for a bit.

Loved this shirt!

We got ourselves cleaned up and changed, then headed back to the Lowe's for the Honest Tea Mocktail Party. I'll be honest, I was disappointed here. They asked for you to RSVP to the event, which I thought that was because there would be drinks (Honest Tea), snacks, etc. they had to account for numbers. When we got there, the Honest Tea people had changed their table around so to make drinks mixing their different products, but that was it. No snacks. No separate room. No checking RSVP. I'm not saying they should have turned people away if they didn't RSVP, but what was the point of doing so in the first place? We had one drink and left. There was nothing making this worth our time of driving back down town. Complete waste of time.

We tried to get a table at a place down the street for dinner, but without reservations it was an hour wait. No. Thanks. I've got 13.1 miles to run in the morning. Gotta get to bed at some point. So, we went back to the Lowe's and got a table at West. We waited about 20 minutes for an inside table. Grabbed a drink at the bar and watched the O's. When we were seated, our table faced the TV's. Hubby was happy. :)

Dinner was tasty. We started by sharing a pizza. The waiter said it was just barely big enough as an appetizer for two, more like a personal pizza for one. Ummmm....no? It was much larger than we anticipated, so we added a shared mac 'n cheese and we each had a salad.

Cell phone pic, sorry for the blurriness

After dinner, we headed back to the hotel. Since everything was laid out, didn't have much to do. Put the ole jammies on, got our wake-up call, and hit the sack. That 5:00 a.m. wake up call would come pretty quick!

And it did! LOL! I'm not a morning person, so anything before 8:00 - 8:30 a.m. is early to me (no, I don't not have children). Got up and got ready. It was quick since everything was laid out and ready. Yea! We were ready to leave almost on time. There were lots of racers in our hotel. We saw all sorts of people heading to their cars, which made it easy to find Navy Stadium. LOL! Follow all the cars. 

We arrived on time, parked our car (really close to start/finish. Yea!), then headed to the port-a-potties. Figured night as well. Then did some stretching before the race.

Pre-race with Navy Stadium in the back

Hubby being creative with the camera and sun flare

The start was a little confusing. I didn't know which direction to go to get in line. There were no corrals or times. Hubby and I both went in because there was room on the side for spectators to sit. We chatted, then hubby decided to go outside against the fencing to watch. 

Here's where I'll be honest. As soon as I saw the weather was going to be in the low-to-mid 70s at the start, I'd been freaking out. I don't do well in the heat. I hate running in it. I hate doing lots of things in it. I even worried about that when I signed up initially that it could be really hot come race day. And as I stood there waiting for the race to start, I struggled not to cry. Which I had trying to hold back for the past 24 hours. I just knew this was not going to be a good race. I knew I would struggle. I knew that it would be miserable.

And we're off! We ran through the big Zooma inflatable start/finish and meandered through the Navy Stadium parking lot before heading into the streets of Annapolis.

Had a little difficulty at the start when my Nano didn't want to work. Honestly, had I not gotten it to work, I would quit right there. I was already doubting what the hell I was doing. But, it finally started playing and kept going. Maybe a mistake?

There were lots of little hills throughout the first part of the race around the stadium. Not too bad, but there. When we came back to Taylor Street, I saw hubby! He came to the one side of the street to cheer me on. We were just over a mile into the race.

It really was good to see him. I was disappointed on the other three sides of the stadium where people lined up to cheer. It surprised me how upset I was getting not seeing him. But, there he was. He saw me first and called my name. Then took some pics. From here, I was one my own...along with all the other racers of course. ;-)

We headed from here into downtown Annapolis. We crossed a pretty stone bridge into the city and around the pretty architecture of the city. It really is a gorgeous city! There were lots of hills here and basically that's all Annapolis is...hills. I'm not kidding. We went around town, down through downtown (I say this because it was a steep downhill), then past the Naval Academy. Slightly disappointed we didn't run through it, but what can you do?

Lots of hills and to this point, I'm running pretty strong. I'm running the hills and I'm thinking this isn't too bad. My times are keeping with that I need for a PR, even running a little ahead of schedule. I was ok with this, figuring the hills later in the race would slow me down and this will be my cushion. Had I known that there was so little flatness to the course...

We came through the city to the Navy Bridge and oh my good Lord. You want me to run that??? Twice??

It's hard to tell from this photo, but it's steep and it's not pleasant doing it twice. As we get to the top of this portion of the race, the 10k peeps get to turn back. Lucky bastards runners. At this point, I honestly considered making the turn and just doing the 10k rather than the half, but that would have been one pricey 10k, so I kept going. Over the bridge and into some weird race course. We ran along a highway for a bit, then turned onto a side road. It was disheartening because you never really knew what was going on. It just seemed to go on forever. And constant hills, very little flat ground to let you catch your breath.

When I got to the turn around point, there were three ladies there to cheer you on. They were amazing! They cheered, high-fived, and generally made you happy to have reached them. I have to give it to Annapolis, they had some great volunteers at this race. Many had the Black Girls Run shirts on and man, I want to join them! They were awesome! Cheering each other on when they saw each other on the course, keeping a positive attitude, volunteering, being fantastic to those who were running by. They embodied the running community to me yesterday. I seriously wonder if they'd take this white girl?

After turning around normally, it makes me happy because I know I have less to run than I ran. This time it didn't matter. I saw the 9 mile sign and texted hubby "Coming up to mile nine. Walking. Can't run." I wanted him to know since I had so hoped to finish under 3 hours. At this point, I knew it wasn't going to happen. I knew I was going to be lucky to finish below 3:10:00. Oh what a joke.

From that point forward I walked. There was an occasional downhill that I jogged, but the quads were unhappy and didn't want me to use them at all. They wanted me to sit down on the side of the road and never move again. Mentally, I can't say I wasn't with them on that. I walked. I tried estimating my finish time and came to about 3:05:00. That wouldn't be horrible, just 3 minutes slower than Shamrock in March and 4 minutes faster than AC from October. Ok.

On my way back over the hill, a poor girl was on the side sitting when the medical personal golf cart came up to her. I came up and asked if she was ok. Apparently she had just thrown up. Medical staff were giving her cold water. I'm not sure what happened from there, but I was a little scared. This girl was fit, she was thin and looked healthy. If she got sick, what about me? I was already nervous because I wasn't sweating the way I was early on. I was thinking I might be a bit overheated with heat dehydration. I contemplated stopping at a police officer and asking for medical personnel. I didn't. Mistake? Maybe.

As I'm on my way back to the stadium, there is a side street with people walking up it with bibs on. There is no course marshal or anything and the two people in front of me crossed the street and kept going. I asked the traffic person who said the race actually continues down the side street. Wha??? Good Lord. So, I turn left and I am the only person I see going my way. I have no idea where I'm going, but I keep plodding long. And this is where I felt completely lost. There were NO course directors out there. I finally caught up to someone so I could follow them, but wow. There was no one helping us back of the packers figure out what to do. This part of the race was just randomness for miles. There was a water station on both sides of the street, which was nice, but other than that, this part sucked! Hit the turn around from this part and started back. On my way, the gentleman who was my "guide" was on the sidewalk getting sick with two medics. Poor man.

I kept going. As I walked, I told those behind me where to go. I know I felt lost as I walked with no one ahead of me, so I tried helping those behind me. I got back to the main street and make a left towards the stadium. Up a hill (surprised?), make a left to a bit of a downhill (which I ran), then make one more right and wow...the stadium. The finish was close! So close that I actually said that. And the woman next to me asked what? I told her, "See that gray building? That's the stadium. We're almost done." She yelled out in surprised and thanked me. Apparently, she was feeling it too. She got ahead of me, lucky girl! But, I kept going. I got to the stadium, allowed an ambulance out of the stadium, and walked to just under a tenth of a mile, then started running to the finish.

And thank the good Lord, I am finished! I honestly didn't think it would ever happen. Yes, that clock said 3:23:17. It's not 100% accurate because that's gun time, but...

I crossed the line and waited for hubby to come around. A nice woman I saw on the course, spritzed me with water. When hubby arrived, we headed to water/food. On the way, I picked up my yoga mat, water bottle, and necklace. There would be no medal for me this day. We walked through the entire expo area and could not find water. Nothing. I stayed under a nice awning while hubby went back seeking water. Apparently, it was at the finish line in a black bucket that wasn't marked and no one there to give it to you. Thanks Zooma for caring about the back of the packers in 84 degree temps. I took my sneakers off and put on my brand new Nike cushioned flip flops. Love them!

I felt like crap, so I wanted out. No wine. No food. No expo. Though, the expo was basically the same people from the night before. I didn't see anything different. We walked to the car and the best thing ever was the air conditioning. I finally started feeling better. Hubby said we got late check-out at the hotel, thank God! I was able to head back to shower rather than just pack. A shower never felt so nice...minus out the chafing...in a not so pleasant place.

Changed and we headed to Pusser's for lunch. It was really the one thing I wanted to do. We had to wait for a table (not surprised!), so we sat on the deck enjoying a celebratory drink.

Painkiller

The reason I like this place is for the view. The food is good. The drinks are good. But the view? Amazing!

I had a yummy salad and sweet potato fries. Not typical post-race food (of which I got nothing from Zooma itself), but I was still overheated and wanted nothing hot. The salad was great and the sweet potato fries were sweet. Perfect! We hung around there until about 3:00 p.m., then headed home. It had been a long day.

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One month

One month from today, I'll be running the Zooma Annapolis Half Marathon! Eep! I haven't been as successful with my goals so far for the race, but I'm feeling ok about things. I haven't lost the amount of weight I wanted to and at this point I won't. I can still lose some, but not be where I wanted to be by race day. I've been working on lifting more and trying to incorporate more core. I got back problems people. Need that core solid!

I haven't been getting in my weekday runs as much as I should. I haven't kept up with all my hill repeats. I haven't always gone to the gym at night.

The positive is I still have a month to change things around. I have 8 miles this weekend. I'm looking into TRX classes at my gym next week (they are doing demos to determine interest). Hubby and I are still working on lifting and core. I start a new program tomorrow called Creative Change Bootcamp, which I'm hoping to delve into my food issues.

So, one month til Z day! I'm still chasing that PR. I'm still chasing a strong run. Here's to a fantastic May!


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Yuengling Light Lager Jogger 5k Race Recap

Hubby and I headed up to Pottsville on Friday for the very first Yuengling Light Logger Jogger 5k. We normally do not stay over night for a 5k (minusing out the Baltimore Women's Classic which has become somewhat of a tradition), but this race seemed too fun to resist.

We arrived on Friday night in time for packet pick-up. We made it to Maroon's and waited in line. It was a bit of a crowd, but not awful. Basically, the space was too small for the 2,500 people who had registered for the race. We picked up our stuff, got our ID's checked for beer consumption after the race, then headed downstairs to have dinner. And we waited. And waited. And waited. Apparently, they did not have enough staff to accommodate the uptick in patrons. We left.

Not having a clue where we were, we took trusty Garmnie and pulled up restaurants. We chose to find The Wooden Keg. Garmie did her thing and off we went. Initially we got lost and on our turn around we found the place.

I was a little nervous because the place was in the middle of a residential neighborhood, but we chose to try it and see. Apparently, it was reputed to be a Molly McGuire hangout in the 1870s. That made us think we made a great choice in restaurants. We grabbed seats at the bar and ordered drinks. They came quickly. After that, it was the slowest service ever. Apparently, another place that didn't put enough staff on for a Friday night rush. We spent about an hour waiting for our main meal and then mine was not cooked to specifications. Ugh. The wait staff told us that the kitchen was just slammed and they apologized for the slow wait, only after we asked if our food was coming anytime soon. I'll be honest, the place is kinda small so I have no idea how they could have been slammed unless they had one cook on...which I suppose they could have.

After dinner it was time to check into the hotel. Hubby used Hotwire to get us a cheap room at the Econolodge in Frackville. It wasn't one of the race hotels, but it was cheap and only 15 minutes from the start. Not bad. Until we get there. I do not like rooms that open to the outside. They kinda freak me out. And I knew since he got an Econolodge that it would be that way. Check in was quick and efficient. We headed to our room, opened the door and the stench of smoke was over powering. Just disgusting. Hubby offered to see if there were any other rooms, but at this point I was tired and I had a feeling they all were like this, so we stayed put. We didn't stay up much longer because we wanted to get up and out to the race early. All race materials indicated it would be a good idea to get there before 7:00 a.m. (race started at 8:00 p.m.) due to parking and such.

Got up Saturday morning at about 5:40 a.m. and got ready. We did great at getting ready by the time we wanted to leave. We checked out and headed to the race. We had no problems getting there, the map the race people provided was perfect for finding parking, and we got to the parking lot about 6:30 p.m. Yea us! We got the closest parking lot to the race and chilled. It was cold out there! We anticipated warmer weather and neither of us had cold gear with us.

About 7:00 p.m. we got out of the car and put bibs on, then followed the crowd to the start...which was a block up from the parking garage! We had no idea we were so close! We passed by packet pick-up since we did that the night before and passed ID check since we did that too. We got confused over the line to sign up for brewery tours, but hubby figured it out and we got in the 9:50 a.m. group. Perfect!

And now to just wander. We did hit the port-a-potties once before the race. We hit the hidden ones thanks to some really nice lady who told us where they were! Then we hit the starting area. No reason not to. This is one of the few races that we both ignored the corrals. There were four well-marked corrals for runners based on how fast you run per minute. I will say I was very disappointed in them in this. All the pre-race emails sta

ted the last corral was 11+ minutes. Ok, that's me. I can be anywhere from 12 to 13 minutes based on the course. When we got there, the corral said

Yea. Somehow I became a walker. I'll be honest, I was pretty upset over this. I know I'm not a fast runner, but I still run. I'm not walking. This was pretty insulting actually. And the main reason for the first time in my running career (is it really a career???) that I ignored the corral system and went in the 9-11 minute mile group. Hubby decided to run slow to start off, so we started together. A pre-race self-photo

We are both wearing our Shamrock stuff because it was the warmest stuff we brought with us. The temps at the start were about 37 degrees. Great running weather if either of us had packed correctly. Ugh. The race did a great job of starting on-time and we were off not too much past 8:00 a.m.

I'm sure you've heard people say the race was all uphill. This race honestly felt that way! Literally, the first mile was uphill. I'm not lying about this. They warned us in the paperwork it would be hilly, but I don't think most of us understood how hilly it would be. My hat is off to any Pottsville runners out there. You are incredible!

This may not seem like a steep hill, but keep going at this grade for a mile. It's kinda insane! I did do my run 1/2 mile walk 1 minute break on this hill. But, I felt good on this hill. I felt strong. I took the break because it's in my training, but I didn't feel like I needed the break. Along this stretch of course was a lovely house with a table out front and the following

What I failed to know at the time was that table held mimosa's and bloody Mary's. LOL! Had I known I would have grabbed a mimosa. Why not? Anyway, I kept going and we finally came to the top of the hill. This is where the first water stop was. Not bad Lager Jogger people. And thank heavens there was a downhill!

All along the course were tons of spectators! Seriously. I have never been involved in a 5k with more people along the whole course. It was pretty cool to see. There were people on their porches, on the sidewalk, in their yards. Not everyone was cheering, but just seeing how many people came out to watch was cool.

At the bottom of this hill we turned left and yes, went back uphill. LOL! It was along here I saw this

On the right is a woman carrying an American flag, next to her in green is a runner dressed in a beer bottle costume. Yup. Not a ton of people dressed in funny costumes for this one, but there were a couple. I almost wore my Bavarian Girl costume. Glad I didn't based on the temps!

And we're running uphill. You can tell that in the pic above and from this one

Once we got to the end of this street, we made a left. And I faced one of the steepest hills I've ever seen. It was insane! I decided it wasn't worth  my effort to run it. I know that sounds pathetic, but I would have put out so much energy and I probably walked it faster. But, there were lots of people who ran it and a few who sprinted.  This view is looking down the hill from the top.

At the top of the hill, we turned left again and headed back to the finish. From here on we had a slight uphill, but it was a gradual one that didn't seem too bad. But, in order to really get to the finish, you had to go up another hill like the above.

Sorry. You have to look past the cemetery to the runners going uphill again. Ugh. Once at the top of that hill, we finally got to go downhill. It was sooo nice! It was gradual so you didn't feel like you were going to go crazy killing your legs from careening out of control. Along this stretch of road were some gorgeous houses! This must have been the well-to-do area of Pottsville. I took this photo and after the race hubby and talked about how there were so many gorgeous houses along this stretch. I told him I took a photo of one and he said was it the one with the carriage house? Ummm...yea... How odd is that?

I didn't get a pic of the carriage house, but it's just to the right of this picture. It was incredible! We wondered if this area is where the Yuengling family actually lives. The houses are grand enough. At the end of this street, we saw the 3 mile marker. Yea! The end was near! But first...no, not another uphill, but rather a downhill like those two insane uphills! Many a person slowed down on this stretch. Me? I sped up!

I have to say, I was feeling really good on this run. Along the stretch of road with the gorgeous homes, Garmin said I was doing 6.3 mph. Wow. That's not me, especially at the end of a race. At the bottom of the hill above, Garmin said I was at 7.2 mph. Insane! I know they were downhills, but they were still at the end of the race. At the bottom of the hill, we made a right onto the home stretch.

On the right of the picture on the sidewalk in that bright neon green is hubby! He cheered me in and I finished the race feeling good, feeling strong, feeling positive. I turned Garmie off and she said 40:48. Sadly disappointed. Before the race I felt this would be my slowest race ever, including my first 5k where I finished in over 45 minutes. But, I felt so good on this course I thought I would be under 40 minutes. Darn it!

Hubby and I found each other and grabbed some snacks. We had water, then a bag of Utz's potato chips, a banana, and an apple. We ate our snacks, then headed over to the beer garden for our two Light Lagers.

We grabbed both of our beers at once since that line was long! We then skipped the table area since it was packed and just used a window ledge that was table level. We even used the ledge for a picture!

We finished our beers and headed off to the Yuengling Brewery for our tour. We have been saying for ages we should go and never have. This was the perfect opportunity to go. We both felt it was a great tour with lots of information and the people who ran it were really great! We enjoyed the tour and at the end grabbed a couple things at the gift shop. It was packed! They must have raked it in yesterday! My shirt is all ready for any beer festivals we may attend. :)

After the tour, we packed it in and headed to Dunkin Donuts. We saw one on the way to the race and since our typical Saturday brunch is DD, why not stop? We had the turkey sandwich and donuts. Yum! I tried a lemon filled donut that was awesome! It was like a lemon pie! 

Then it was home. Overall a fun race. I was in a foul mood from dinner and hotel, but the race and after party turned that around quick! Honestly, it was a really fun 5k and I would be willing to do it again next year. 

Did you race this weekend? Was it a new race for you or an old favorite?

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