My goal going in was 22:30, but I knew it was a "stretch goal"-- I'm sure that my fitness level is there, but just looking at the course and the weather, I knew it wouldn't be easy. It turns out the weather wasn't as much a factor as the crowds! Like Deb, we were a little confused as to the actual start line, so we ended up starting near the back of the pack.
The first km, I was dodging people, and warming up. I got well behind my goal pace, and didn't manage to put in a sub 5:00 minute pace until the second km or so. Like Nicole wrote, it's awesome when you pass a bunch of people, even if it means that you started too far back, and it makes it tough to hit your goal. I finished in 23:33-- which would have been good, if the course hadn't been short.
A few thoughts about the race:
- Fun-runs aren't a good place to target a PR.
- The race was put on by the local run store, the Running Room. Their goal seems to be to get people running, not to put on a serious competitive race
- The fact the course was a little short was very disappointing, especially since they sell Garmins.
- I liked the crazy orange sweaters they gave out!
- Didn't care for the "post-run meal"... hot chocolate (yay) and cinnamon buns (meh)... someone said there'd be chili?
Still, we had a lot of fun, and I'd do it again.
Afterwards, we went to a friend's house for NYE celebrations. A majority of people there are turning thirty in 2011, so the hostess made a cake and we sang happy birthday... perverse. But the cake was tasty.
