Silicon Valley Turkey Trot 10k Recap
Last Thanksgiving I was two weeks into the HMR Core program and planned on waking up early to cheer on the runners going past my apartment complex. Instead I stayed curled up on the couch enjoying a shake and watching the parade on television. My family went on a one mile walk that evening and I thought that was a lot of activity.
This year was going to be different. Several coworkers and I planned on running the Turkey Trot when our school had made the announcement we would try to get enough registrants for a company tent (we didn’t unfortunately) and a number of friends also signed up to run or walk either the 5 or 10k.
As debate season stretched on, I made my goal just to finish the 10k giving it my absolute best but my primary focus was having fun, not trying for a PR. I started talking to friends and was excited to have several friends who wanted to run with me! I have always felt too slow for most of my runner friends so it was exciting that I might start and finish with people I knew.
I worked the parking lot for packet pick-up the day before the race, so I already knew to expect an insane number of people on race day. Luckily the 10k started 40 minutes before the 5k which meant most of the crowds would arrive after we started.
My friend Susan met up at my apartment and we did a slow mile jog to the starting area in order to warm up for the race. We met up with our friends Julie, Pete and Kim. Susan and Kim were running the 5k and Pete and Julie and I were running the 10k. We met up in the front of the 8-9 minute pace area. There weren’t walled corrals and it was self-seeding but wearing bright colors and identifiable head gear made it easy to find each other. Check out my turkey legs!
The race started and somehow we ended up near the very front of the 10k starting line (less than a minute between gun and chip time). I was hoping to keep a sub-9 minute for as long as I could without making it impossible to breathe because I knew I had been doing it on my own time and now I had friends who could help me. In fact, every time I felt myself slowing down, one of them would pull slightly ahead which helped me do an internal check and realize I was totally capable of maintaining the faster pace. Gotta check the internal laziness sometimes!
We race along folks holding signs and weaved around those slowing to a walk. Most of the 10k felts very similar to the Rock and Roll half course (well for the first segment) which helped me feel confident in my pacing.
When we reached the SAP center, we saw hundreds of 5k folks who had arrived who were trying to walk to the start line. Unfortunately it meant traveling through the height of the 10k runners as there wasn’t another way to get to the start from where they parked! A friend later told me she felt like she was playing frogger to get to the 5k (her first time at the Turkey Trot as well).
My shoe was untied at mile 5 which definitely meant a quick safety stop. But that quick pause helped me assess my energy level and I picked up the pace as we wound around through the neighborhood I call home.
During that 5th mile, Julie reminded me where I was at one year ago and suddenly I felt alive. I tried to hold back tears (don’t want to get dehydrated!) and instead funneled the momentum into my legs. I continued to push through in mile 6, shaving over 30 seconds off the previous mile and running my fastest mile in the race!
As we got near the finish, I wanted to push for a finishing kick but didn’t think I had it in me. Julie kept up the positive cheerleading she had been giving throughout the race and told me to follow her. She picked up the pace and I followed as we pushed through and finished strong.
I looked at my Garmin when we crossed the finish and I had shaved over three minutes off my 10k PR from September! I couldn’t believe it! I also shaved 5 seconds off my 5k PR from October! My official finishing time was 54:59!!!
Aside from needing water right away from the cold dry air (I didn’t bring my own hydration on the course like previous 10ks), I felt amazing! When we walked through the finishing chute area and saw the start for the 5k, I almost wanted to join friends there and go around again!
We made our way to the finishers village where we found a plethora of supportive snacks and then wandered out the other side to cheer on all of our friends at the 5k including my husband who rocked the race (and almost missed seeing me cheer for him). It was so much fun and I stayed and cheered the runners and walkers until the last few folks at the end passed by.
The group that puts on this race also puts on the Santa Run 5k on December 14. I can’t to dress up and enjoy another holiday jaunt around downtown San Jose!
The Giant Race 10k Race Recap
With debate season in full swing, I have a lot of posts I have started and finding time to finish them has been difficult! I remember how frazzled I was last year at this time and I didn’t have to try to fit in physical activity and meal planning then!
The Giants 10k was part of a series of races celebrating running, community, and the San Francisco Giants franchise. I ran the San Jose Giants 5k in June and completed the “turn two” challenge to ear a special pair of Giants earbuds.
The 10k was held the same day as a half and a 5k. I opted to sign up for the 10k because the Disneyland Half was the weekend before and I signed up in the spring, before I had done many races. So I wasn’t sure how well I would be conditioned.
I opted to raise money for Project Open Hand instead of just paying the race fee. This gave me a unique purpose for the race and it ended up becoming something bigger than just a 10k. I think this organization does awesome things for our community and worked to raise far more than the minimum required. I apparently raised enough to even have access to a special lounge at the race. I have to admit that having a warm place and private bathrooms was a luxury I could definitely get used to having!
Because I registered early enough, I had my bib and shirt mailed to me. This meant not having to drive up to San Francisco for the race expo. While I missed exploring all the fun the expo, I definitely appreciated the convenience.
The 10k had a combined start with the half and released in several waves. There were lengthy breaks between each wave which kept my nerves building as I had listed a predicted finish time that had me in one of the last corrals. Just as I had realized the weekend before, I knew I would be doing some weaving based on where I was starting.
I had decided I would try to push myself as long and as hard as I could. I had a secret goal in my head but I was scared to share it because I didn’t know if I could take my sub-30 5k time from mid-summer and go sub-60 with double the distance. And I was going to be okay if that couldn’t happen. But I figured I would try.
The course was incredibly crowded and there wasn’t enough room on the street to sort everyone out. I ended up on the sidewalk for a significant portion of the first couple miles. I felt bad for the poor pedestrians but people were walking three and four across and there was no way to get around the large groups. Rather than get angry, I just worked my way through. I definitely expended a lot of energy weaving but I let it go and just enjoyed pushing myself.
I was shocked when I looked down at my Garmin and saw my first two miles were under a 9:30 per mile each despite the weaving. And as I started to assess myself, I knew I could push a little faster.
At the turnaround I suddenly found myself facing the massive pack I had been weaving around. The lanes were so narrow that I ended back up on the sidewalk to avoid running head first into the masses spilling into the return lane. I pushed through mile four with sheer force but when the road opened up more in the last two miles, I felt some of that energy go away. Suddenly I wanted to slow down. I had proven I could go fast but my body wanted to chill and take it slow.
I began to review why I was running. Why had I started running (for my health) and why I raised money for this run (to help the health of members in my community). I started crying (which doesn’t mix well with sweat and sunscreen and contacts!) and I seriously felt the invisible hands of all of those friends who donated to support this cause were pushing me forward to keep up my pace.
Splits:
Mile One – 9.25.8
Mile Two – 9.22.4
Mile Three – 9.13.9
Mile Four – 9.06.0
Mile Five – 9.21.3
Mile Six – 9.24.1
Last .28 – 2.21.8
Garmin Finish: 6.28 miles at 58.15.2
Official Race Finish Time: 58.10
I RAN A SUB 60 10k!!!!!
The finish line was on the field and once you finished you could stretch out on the grass before picking up a variety of treats on your way out. I enjoyed the fruits and veggies and then went back to the lounge to rest and watch the 10k and half finish before going out to cheer for a friend doing the 5k.
I also signed up to raise money for Project Open Hand again in 2015. And this time I am running the half!
The Healthy Academic 