Brownies and Zucchini

Full Disclosure: Race sponsor LIVEALITY paid for my race entry in exchange for spreading the word about the free digital photo book that all race participants will receive.  As always, all opinions are completely my own.

Thanksgiving races or “turkey trots” seem to be popular all over the country.  Madison has one that I’ve know about for a while, but never participated in…until this year.  As I mentioned in a previous post, when the people at LIVEALITY offered to pay for my race entry in exchange for some promotion, I was unsure at first.  We have Thanksgiving day traditions that start fairly early in the morning, and this race would definitely interfere with those.  After thinking about if for a while, and talking with my family, I decided to go for it.

When race day came, I can’t say I was super psyched about my decision.  The temperatures were cold, I was tired, and running a 5K was not something that was at the top of my list.  It helped that my husband was running it with me, so I couldn’t back out and just sleep in instead.  So, we got ready in multiple layers of clothing and headed over to the race site bright and early.  The race didn’t start until 9:20, but I had to be there at 7:30 to meet with Peter from LIVEALITY and pick up our bibs and swag bags.

Everything up to that point went smoothly.  We found a great parking spot with no problems, and were all set to go.  Unfortunately we had quite a while to wait.  In other race conditions, we may have wandered around the area a bit, or taken more photos, but it was cold.  Ice cold.  So we opted to wait in the car where it was warmer.

And I think it was the waiting that did me and my nerves in, because my stomach was not happy.  I mentioned that this was an issue during the Zooma 10k, and it was an issue again – this time before the race even started.  I suppose this was a better situation than dealing with it during the race, but it sure did make me want to pack up and go home.  But I stuck with it, in hopes that it would pass before the time came that we needed to leave the warmth of the car and go  line up.  And luckily, I was feeling a bit better by the time we headed to the start line at about 8:50.

But then the coldness hit me.  I knew it would be cold, this wasn’t a surprise, and I thought I dressed in enough layers, but my body was telling me otherwise.  I was wearing six layers on top (sports bra, tank top, long sleeve tee, short sleeve tech tee, long sleeve zip up, long sleeve race tee) as well as a hat, Bondi Band, long pants, shin sleeves, and gloves.) and somehow that wasn’t enough.  I knew I had to keep moving to stay warm, but with my stomach still a little unsettled that didn’t seem too appealing.   At one point we found a warm indoor spot to stand for a few minutes to warm up a bit, and once we get into our corral with the other runners, it seemed a bit warmer too.

Then it was finally time for our wave to start!  I was definitely excited to be moving (and honestly, to just get it over with) but I swear my legs and feet were numb.  I started super slow – definitely slower than I needed to be going.  I also knew though that I am prone to go out too fast and not maintain pace, so I was ok with being a little slow in the beginning.  I didn’t start Runkeeper because my phone was in a pocket under two layers of clothing and I didn’t want to dig it out.

Once I got running, things definitely improved.  Slow and steady was what I was aiming for, and pretty much what I did throughout the race.  I didn’t warm up as quickly as I was hoping, but by about the 2 mile mark, I was finally feeling warmer and running at a better pace.  If only I was able to run the whole race like I did that last mile, my time would’ve been much better. But really, I’m glad that I finished at all considering how miserable I was waiting for the race to start.

Aside from the cold though, the race itself was great.  It was well organized, the course was well marked, and there were supportive people cheering you on at every turn. (I can only imagine on a warmer day there were be more cheering spectators) It wasn’t exactly an easy course – there were some hills – but it wasn’t all that bad either.  There were many families running and walking the race, and people of all ages and abilities – it is clear that for some people this race is a Thanksgiving tradition.  I was also impressed with how quickly we were able to get out of the parking lot, and how organized the parking situation seemed to be.  There were police officers directing traffic at the stop lights, and everyone was courteous about letting people in line.  While I definitely was not in the best spirits starting the race, I was much happier when I finished and was finally warmed up.  If the weather was better, I would definitely consider running the Berbee Derby again in the future.

Thanks again to LIVEALITY for the race entry, and for giving everyone a free KEEPIX photo album! (the cover is the image above) I love the idea of having all of the race information and fun photos in one place as a keepsake! It also is easily shareable on Facebook! (I’m especially thankful to have at least that one photo of the husband and I from their photo booth since my fingers were way to cold to be taking photos!)

Buffer

Filed under: Race Recap, Words Tagged: | Berbee Derby, LIVEALITY, Race Recap, Thanksgiving