This was the 12th time that I have attended this great family race. It's got to be the most friendly and most competitive 5K in Utah!
Again, there isn't any place I'd rather be on the first Saturday in June to run a 5K! The Nestle Art City Days 5k is an intuition that deserves our respect.
Again, it was a beautiful morning to run in Springville, the sky was overcast and the temperature was at @ 62 degrees with a bit of a swirling breeze.
Again, I lined up at the front of the race near the starting line to effect my very old race strategy, that being, if I start in front of my age division runners I can stay in front of them till the end.
The race went off at 7:30 am Sharp! Again, I use again, this is my 12th time to run this fun run. It's got to be the most competitive fun run anywhere!
The signal went up to start and I did, I thought that I had paid enough attention to a pre race warm up but by the time I was out to about the first quarter mile mark my lungs were burning and I thought I was going to give up the will to live. It was time to lace 'em up and keep up the pace as planned. I caught my breath and told myself to keep the faith and keep on running, it's only a 5K and your almost done already.
By then I was at the hill where the race make a turn around and you head back to the high school and the finish line. If you can't run the length of this short hill at a steady pace you will lose many many places in your race to the finish and I "did not" take the piano from the bear on the hill this year!
So around the corner I went with all kinds of younger runner passing me, but to my delight I was still "Geezering" bunches of other runners young and old!. Sometimes this can be a bit heartbreaking but one must remember that this race is really all about you and the clock from start to finish and if you happen beat anybody else to the finish line it's just the sweet icing on the cake of running.
At the two mile mark I sucked down a cup of water that I don't think that I really needed but it was there. I had my brief water break slowdown and then it was off to the finish as well as I could get my short, fat old man body down the road.
I pushed on and made the turn at the high school and entered the big red rubberized track and tried to put on my best face and finish the race to the finish. And yes Brother HillBilly Runner, I sported my big cigar and finished my 12th Nestle 5k.
23:59 (un-official time), 1st. Plc. 60-64 men.
Again, at the raffle I managed to catch a Frisbee and then was completely skunked from any of the other prizes that they gave out. But one of the younger kids in our running party managed to win an I-POD. Good on Grace, this was her first run "ever". What a great day for her!
What can I say, I had a ball running this yearly classic. I got out and gave it the best shot I could, again! This race gives me hope that this years racing plans will be fun and successful after last years brutal campaign of multiple race running.
PRIOR PREPRATION PREVENTS PISS POOR PERFORMANCE