Will Run for Chocolate

This morning was the annual Hot Chocolate 5K and 15K.  Fun as always and good weather!  Last year it was coooold!  I'm talking 20 degrees or so at start.  brrrrrrr

Coco and myself from last years race

 This year we had a good 40 degrees or so.  The boys of course convinced me to run without my jacket on so I was more than a little chilly waiting to start. I almost hate to admit it, but they were right.  All in all a good run with my sister and friend, Kristin.  Our goal (as none of us had really trained for the distance but all have endurance event backgrounds) was to finish in about an hour and a half.  Despite a prolonged bathroom break at mile 4.5 we managed to achieve our goal that is at least on our timers if not by the official time clock.

Unfortunately it looks like race season for 2011 is over.  It's getting too chilly for it to be pleasant waiting for starts and I'm pretty low on cash.  I guess that gives me plenty of time to train for some spring half marathons and get myself back to my preferred pace.  A winter of  a weekly long run and lots of treadmill intervals here I come... I want to get another half done at a sub 8:45min/mile pace!

waiting to start with several thousand of my favorite people in the Chicago

With Coco and Kristin

Representing CCOM class of 2012 (I want to be a 4th year too!)

Post race, heading to get some Hot Chocolate!

  My favorite thing about this race wasn't the race I ran though, more so it was that my best friend Kate ran the 5K!   I'm not sure if she really knows just how excited I am that she took the initiative to sign up and run it.  After a year of working out with her here and there and trying to get her to run she finally did a race (with a little motivation from her marathoning friend Eddie).  Unfortunately I didn't get to see her at all as the 5K takes off about 40 minutes before the 15K starts (strange, if you ask me they should in the opposite order) and it would have been silly for her to wait around 90 minutes for me to finish my run.  Although there is chocolate fondue at the end...  :)  I can't wait to see her later tonight and see how she feels about the experience.  Now I know I'm probably never going to convince her to run a marathon, but I do hope she had a lot of fun and keeps having a more positive view about running.  Yes, Kate, I know you'll forever stick to your yoga at heart.