Thursday, March 07, 2013

Mardi Gras Madness 5K 2013

This past Saturday was the Mardi Gras Madness 5K here in town, and I did it for the second year in a row.

The course was the same as last year.  It was pretty much flat except for the bridge they have us use to cross over the main street and get to the bike path.  Starts and ends in a strip mall. It’s actually kind of fun that way for something different.

Last year, it was my first time doing a 5K in under 30 minutes.  I was a bit slower than that this year – I completed it in 30:38.  But considering I’ve been running once a week most of the year, I’m actually okay with that.  If I’d been using my watch to pace myself, I probably could have done it under half an hour, but I really didn’t care.

Another difference this year was my roommate did it with me.  He beat me, but I was kind of expecting that.  And I think it was only by a couple of minutes.

This race benefits a program that trains teens in town to run the LA marathon.  What was fun is that two teens I know are part of the program this year, and I spotted one of them at the race directing traffic.  I got a kick out of that.

The weather was perfect, a tad nippy but warming up quickly.  In fact, it was so nice, I went to play ultimate Frisbee that morning after the run.  I just couldn’t sit inside on a day like that.

It did cool off that evening by the time I went out for a friend’s birthday party.  We were sitting outside for a while, and I wished I had brought by jacket.

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