A friendly stampede

Last year, I spent 4th of July weekend in Lake Geneva, so I missed what was purported to be a great race - the Frontier Days Stampede Run, right in my town. So I vowed that this year, I would not miss it. And I didn't; I ran the 5K yesterday morning.

Although race day dawned sunny and warm, the 81 degrees at the start was a far cry from the previous day's 111, so it actually felt like a weird cold snap. Kristen, Linda and I walked the mile from my place to the race site, and I had a twinge of melancholy. This was my last race here as an Arlington Heights resident, and I wasn't expecting it to hit me. My town really knows how to support and celebrate its runners; it's made me proud to be a runner here. I can't wait to come back and be part of it, either as a runner or a resident, or both.

The run itself was great. I finished in 41:30, at a pace of 13:22 per mile; pretty slow, but pretty good for this girl. I'm still hungering to break the 40-minute mark, but I know one day I'll get there.

At about the halfway point, my left Achilles started to hurt. (It still hurts, which pisses me off, but I'm trying not to panic.) Liberal walk breaks became necessary, and I was starting to really feel the heat. (And seriously, people, when it's 80 degrees, a water station at Mile 2 is not sufficient.) The finish line included great food (Watermelon! Clif bars! Bananas! Bagels! Coconut water!) but no coffee, so we only stuck around long enough to objectify a fireman and scarf down a snack; then, it was off to breakfast (bacado omelet from Egg Harbor, thank you very much).

And as race morning drew to a close, I settled in to enjoy my Sunday. A few chores, a little puttering, and a nap ... ahhh, that's the ticket! I limped around a lot, and I'm gonna have to pay pretty close attention to the Achilles to make sure I haven't done anything more than strain it. Today it hurts a little, but I'm wearing heels, so stretching it out in athletic shoes will tell the true tale ... as will getting on the scale tonight after spin class. As of this morning, I had lost again this week, but that's not on the "official" scale, and you know how I feel about that. So, until tomorrow's update, I'll leave you with this photo from yesterday's race:

Me, in pink (as usual) and ready to run!