Here's the thing with early spring races, you just never know what the weather is going to be. The forecast said it would be in the 60's which is perfect weather for me, so when I woke up, I put on some capris pants and a t-shirt, ready to go.... except when I opened the front door, I was met with frigid air. Grabbed a jacket along with my banana and iced tea and headed out to Wakefield. Parking was no problem and I grabbed my packet and sat with Joann in her car (with the heat running full blast) until the race start. We found Jessie, Mindy and Lori in the starting corral just before we set up for the 5.5 mile trail run... yep, they added a *bonus* half mile!
We start out and quickly separate, which I like - don't like holding anyone up and don't like trying to keep up with people that are faster than me. Soon I find myself at the back of the pack, but not last - I pass one girl who is already walking, get to the first water stop and pass another girl... awesome, I know there are 2 people behind me! I actually walked a lot less than I thought I would during this race. Both girls I had passed were right behind me and I didn't want to risk them gaining on me. I let myself walk a minute or two here and there but I really ran the majority of this trail run. I even ended up passing another girl just past the halfway mark.
They said the course was flat, but yeah, not so much. The last few miles were pretty hilly, but finally I was at the "half mile remaining" marker and knew it was just about over. The weather did warm up and I actually found myself getting hot. Getting hungry and glad to be done! Being slow has it's perks as I had a large cheer squad waiting for me at the end. My watch said 1:16 for the 5.5 trail miles which isn't awful, and it turns out there were more than just those 3 girls behind me so I was definitely not last. I'm happy. Then it was off to Kilroy's for a delicious brunch and home for a quick shower and the rest of the day on the couch.
