First Race of 2012

Last night's weather conditions (freezing and extremely windy) had me on the fence about running a 5K race today. As much as I love racing, I'm not a fan of the cold or wind. I'm what you call a fair-weather-runner. I have no problems pounding out miles on my treadmill if conditions aren't perfect. But, upon dragging my butt out of bed this morning, conditions had improved. The wind had died down and the sun was coming up. With no snow or ice on the ground, I couldn't let Mother Nature get the best of me.

I trekked to Newton for the 1st annual Pink Nose/ Blue Toes 5K benefiting the Skiff Cancer Center. About 90 other participants and I sported the typical running tights, headbands, hats and gloves to run/walk a 3.1 mile loop.

I set goals for the 2012 running season. One is to beat a 25:00 5K time. I only had to shave 7 seconds off my PR. Doable with the speed and hill training I've been doing to stave off treadmill-dread. Thanks to my Garmin, I knew I was keeping pace to reach my goal. My final time was 24:23. 36 seconds to spare. Totally worth waking up early on a Saturday morning.

Bonus: Beany hat instead of t-shirt. I have a closet full of race t's.

Downfall: Since I reached my goal so early in the season, I have to beat it. I can't peak in January.