I have so much to say about this race. Good and bad. But mainly good!

Certainly the best thing was being able to raise over $1000 for Ronald McDonald House Charities. I’m still so humbled to have such a wonderful following on social media. So many of you helped me reach my goal. I’m grateful to you all.

And how ironic that my nephew and his wife are now being helped by the same charity in Kansas City, as their infant daughter is fighting with her own medical battle. I thought of her during this run, as well as Carina, who carried me through some difficult moments as I ran.

Hot Chocolate 5K & 15K Bibs.

I volunteered at the Expo the day before and got to meet some amazing people. I even ran into some of my blog followers, which was a real treat! I handed out bibs the majority of the time, then got some time to shop as I picked up my own goody bag afterwards.

Ronald McDonald House Charities issued me a $50 gift card for raising over $1000, so I picked out a super cute Hot Chocolate 5K & 15K cowl neck tech shirt. I also checked out all the new fangled gear that was on hand at the expo. In the end, I didn’t spend another dime because I really do have enough. In fact, I’m selling a lot on E-Bay right now as it is. I’m on running gear overload at the moment.

Hot Chocolate 5K & 15K Flat Me.

I was eager to get back home and figure out how I was going to wear two race bibs with just a tank top and my Fittie. It took me a bit of finagling, but in the end, I decided against the Fittie and opted for my single bottle hydration belt with the larger pocket for my phone and Energybits. My Carina bib, I attached to my hydration belt so that I could shift it from front to back with little difficulty, and it would leave room for my race bib with timing chip up front. I wore a tank and shorts, with my new SLS3 Butterfly Compression socks, because I knew that is what Carina would have me wear. And, of course, I was all neon.

The only last minute change I made was to bring along a throw away jacket. Unfortunately my husband had to bail last minute as our daughters’ had friends sleep over the night before. We couldn’t leave them home alone with friends. Therefore, I had to leave a little earlier to find parking and decided to check a bag at the finish so that I didn’t have to run with my keys or my eyeglasses. I prepared my Bulletproof coffee, grabbed a Quest bar just in case, and was off.

I also planned to exchange my jacket. I can’t believe that me…of all people…neglected to try on my jacket while I was at the expo. I mean, it fit “OK” but, it was a little small. All the P90X I do makes me a little broader on top and makes my upper arms too big for some small sizes. If I could get a medium, I’d be a little more comfortable in it.

I got a good night’s sleep and woke a little before 6am for a 7am departure. I planned out exactly where I wanted to park, but when I arrived, that garage was closed. Not having a backup plan, I drove around until I found a parking lot in a park that was on the race course. I was getting anxious, so I just parked there, figuring I’d either get boxed in until the race ended, or I’d get a ticket. In the end, I was grateful it was neither.

Hot Chocolate 5K & 15K race jackets.

And there were no women’s medium jackets at the gear exchange. I did, however, opt for the men’s small. It worked out great, actually, as they were green rather than pink, and the fit after I washed the jacket was perfect.

I checked my bag and headed for the bathroom and the start line. They had plenty of potties, and a huge line of them had no waiting whatsoever. Bonus!

It was chilly. The temperatures were in the 50s, but there was a stiff breeze. I was happy I brought the throw away jacket.

Hot Chocolate 5K & 15K Start Line #selfie.

I took a selfie, but a fellow runner offered to snap my photo for me.

Hot Chocolate 5K & 15K Start Line photo.

There wasn’t much time for small talk, and in fact, I didn’t even have any time to set up my podcast or my runmeter. Before I knew it, we were off and running…and I felt very unprepared. I ended up running naked (sans podcast, music, and runmeter).

I started off a bit faster this week since I was in front of the pack. And I tried to settle in to something around a 7:30 pace. It was relatively flat going for much of the run, except for the times we crossed the river. I’m pretty sure that happened 4 times! I kept trying to determine where in the city I was. And it wasn’t until we passed Team Ortho headquarters that it all clicked. Then, we did a little loopty loo over the third crossing, and I was passing my parked car! LOL! No ticket…thank GOD.

And then it appeared, I was running the exact same course I did last week at Goldy’s 10-mile run. Except this time we doubled back to the west instead of the east. But gosh darn it…we had to run up that same hill that about killed me last Saturday! DOH!

Everything went very smoothly until about mile 8 and the final bridge crossing. It was then that I felt something give in my leg. I can’t describe it, but I knew there was something very wrong. I was able to continue running on it, with really no trouble, but afterwards I came to the painful conclussion that I may have suffered another stress reaction in almost the same spot as last year.

All done!

It’s bittersweet. I finished this run for Carina as promised, but I’ve jeopardized the next few months, including New Prague and the Minneapolis Marathon. But, I can’t sweat this. I need to heal, and I need to prepare for Chicago. That is my next big run…and that is the one I will focus on.

In retrospect, I’m glad I went solo. Because on the drive home, I cried. I mean, I bawled. I cried for Carina, I cried for her family. I cried for my own family. I cried for my injury. Then, I stopped. And an overwhelming sense of calm came over me. And I smiled. I counted my blessings, for which I have many. And I began to embrace the future.

So, Buh Bye running…for now.

It is like DejaVu…a year later.

Hot Chocolate 5K & 15K Race Results.

I still finished in a respectable time, but just one place out of a place award. The bling for this one, though, is enough. I did what I set out to do. And it is done.

Hot Chocolate 5K & 15K Goodies.

Time to reassess and regroup.

Blogger’s Note: I did not eat anything in my goodie bag as I am Low Carb/High Fat. My family, however, had a fiesta.

Have you ever heard something snap during one of your runs? What was it, and how did it end up ending for you?