What a wonderful race!!! Sometimes it's not so much about the end time, but the journey you make while getting there. Got a call last night that my niece wanted to do the fun run. She wanted to know if Lauren (my 10 yr old) want to do it with her while the moms ran the 10K. Lauren was game. I was excited to have her up and racing with me. She was a perfect angel to get up early and get to the park to get registered.  *traditional honey bucket pre-race photo. Mom's and girls.
Met up with bye-wing and did the normal pop stop and then went to line up. We started at the front (off to the side), but waited for the majority of runners to pass before we joined in the crowd. Didn't want to get trampled! The fun run and 10K run the same route at the start, so we got to hang with the girls for a while, but then they turned and we still had a 4 mile loop left :) bye-wing did a great job! Coming from sea-level running to Utah running is difficult, but she handled it in stride and kept her breathing steady and even the whole time. There are a few good uphill portions of the race, but it is nice to be able to see the top of the hill and push to the crest then recover. Explained the ROOLS to her so she would know why you must pick up the pace on the hills and you couldn't whine. I like the course because there is one section of out/back so you can see all the leaders at their 3.5ish (well, that is where we crossed them). I had a great time encouraging all the lead runners and everyone that followed as we crossed. Those BBK's are stinkin' fast! All in the lead. Around mile 4 we started leap-frogging a lady who was prego (5mo) and we got to chatting (yeah, I know...can you imagine? me? chatting in a race? hahaha) she remembered my shirt from last year at Ogden when I was running prego! How funny! What a small world. That is why I love to wear a good shirt. Totally worth it when people remember and talk about it afterward. My favorite moment was when we passed mile 5 marker. Bye-wing said "oh! YES! FIVE! That is just what I needed to see." With the hills behind us and only 1.2 left, she knew she'd made it and hearing that in her voice made me smile. We pushed through to the end and the prego lady was in front of us. I told Bye-wing "go catch her...you can't let the pregnant lady beat you" (this was probably more for me than her :) ), but true to her good nature she said "maybe she needs the confidence boost more than I do." I told her she was too nice, and that in a race you can't be nice! She just simply replied "this isn't a race for me, just a run". Dang it! Can't argue with that logic. However..... about 100 yds later we turned the corner to the finish line and had a 1/4 mile or so left. Well, the race finally got to the runner. Bye-wing opened things up and shot towards that finish line like nobody's business. What the heck? Where you been hiding all this speed girl? I looked at the Garmin and she was at a sub 7:30! Now I KNOW she's been holding back on me. I think it is time for this girl to get some speed going. Easily passed prego and nearly caught the other 3 people waaayyy in front of prego. That finish line always inspires quite well :)  (I'm in the back with the pink visor stopping the garmin. Bye-wing is the happy finisher...yeah, she beat me. But, I let her win :) ).
I was SO proud of the work bye-wing did in the race, good consistent push and a nice finish to cap it all off. I think she will surprise herself at Des-news! Had a great chat with the gaggle of runners at the finish line, and some good snacks as well. Our daughters were there at the finish and they had both finished 2.2 miles in just over 28 minutes. My daughter said she felt like she could've run the whole way, but wanted to wait for her cousin when she got a side cramp. I think this comment came as a result of me telling her that I wanted her to push and try to run the whole way since it was a race (that we PAID for) and not just walk. Either way, I think she did a great job and I am SO proud of her! It was fun to have her there and to see how proud she was to join 'the runners' at the finish line (and the snack table). I think I need to find a 5K for her to run with me this summer. Overall, a great race and a wonderful morning! It is SO fun at local races to see all the familiar faces (especially as they get their awards) and to chat afterward (yeah, yeah...I know, me and chatting). Happy 4th of July everyone!!! AP: 10:47 splits: 10:48, 10:24, 10:57, 11:19, 11:18, 10:40, 8:48 (SEE?!? This girl is holding back on me! last .34)
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