She Runs by the Seashore

On a warm June morning, I ran my second 5K race of the year — the Spectrum Superstars 5K. The summer isn’t my favorite time of year to run, but I was excited to support the Lower Shore Autism Community and my friend Jayme, who organized the race and is also on our race committee for the Eastern Shore Running Club Pirate’s Wharf 5K.

Two organizations I’m involved with also sponsored the race — the Eastern Shore Running Club, of which I’m president, and TidalHealth, where I work.

I ran the Ben Layton 5K the prior month in 30:54 and didn’t have super high hopes for a faster time at this race, as the Ben Layton race was at the end of May, when it’s cooler, and this one also started at 10 a.m. While I was correct about not beating that time, I surprised myself and finished with a better time than I expected.

We had a large ESRC showing at the race, which was June 28, and we got our group photo before heading off. Of course, it had been cloudier earlier in the day and the sun seemed to come out right around the time the race started. In addition to the 5K, there was also a one mile fun walk option.

The race started and finished at Salisbury Bible Fellowship, and the course took us into the nearby neighborhoods. When I started out, I saw the other people I was near and felt like I was too far up in the pack. I know many, if not most, of the local runners in our area, and I felt like the runners I was near are normally faster than me. I ran the first mile in 9:33, which did end up being too fast for what I could maintain for the 5K on that day.

I felt surprisingly good for the first mile, but I did start fading. We passed the water stop twice, and I didn’t stop the first time we passed it, but I did the second time. During the rest of the run, I had to walk four additional times — which is not bad, as I enjoy run-walk intervals, but I was starting to struggle, and my heart rate was getting pretty high.

I ran the second mile in 10:33 and the third in 11:05. I picked it up a little at the end, knowing I didn’t have much farther to go, and ran the last bit in 1:14, what my watch logged as a 9:07 pace.

I crossed the finish line in 32:26. Because of the heat and humidity — this was the weekend after I returned from Nashville, and it had been an especially hot and humid week — I wasn’t sure if I may be closer to 35 minutes or so. So, I was pleasantly surprised and pleased that it only took me about a minute-and-a-half longer than it took me to run the Ben Layton on a much cooler day.

After the race, there were free Playa Bowls for participants, which was a delicious treat! I also enjoyed an ice pop. And of course, there were water and Gatorade (and I think some other snacks, too)!

In addition to age group awards, there were also some great door prizes. I didn’t win anything, but that was (obviously) OK. It was a fun morning!

Splits

Mile 1: 9:33
Mile 2: 10:33
Mile 3: 11:05
Last part (watch said .14): 1:14 / 9:07 pace
Final: 32:26 on watch and results (10:28/mile pace)