Shirt Chaser 5K & Marathon Training - Week 11

This week had been scheduled as a rest week following the Inside-Out Sports Half Marathon, so apart from a couple of yoga sessions, I didn't do anything of note until Saturday evening. My legs were tired on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from running the race, volunteering and not having the chance for a cold bath immediately after the race, so I was glad that I didn't have anything on my schedule.

Saturday was the Skirt Chaser 5K in downtown Raleigh. This race is different from all others in that the women start 3 minutes ahead of the men, and are given running skirts to wear as part of their registration fee (instead of a t-shirt). The idea is that the men attempt to chase down the women for a chance at the $500 first place prize ($200 for second and $100 for third). Elizabeth had seen this race advertised and wanted to do it together.

Another unusual thing about this race was that it started at 5pm. Most races are held in the mornings in Raleigh. Partly to minimize the disruption from road/lane closures and partly because it is cooler in the early hours. Following this race was free beer and food and a party atmosphere, so it made sense to have the race start at 5pm. I can't remember the last time I raced at 5pm! it is very different as I typically only eat a light breakfast before a morning race. I had no choice but to eat a full lunch on Saturday and a snack in the afternoon and hope that my stomach felt okay during the race.

The weather was partly cloudy with temperatures around 80F (26C) and luckily fairly low humidity (somewhere around 60%). I had taken a look at the course map before the race and knew that the first two miles were uphill (the first mile on the uphill stretch of Hillsborough Street) and then the final mile was downhill, so I felt that if I could get through the first two miles with a relatively good time, I'd be able to push hard on the last mile.

As we lined up at the start (after the women had already started), the announcer spotted a couple of guys that appear at lots of events around Raleigh dressed up in suits and bought them to the front of the pack.



At the gun, the guys sprinted away with the fast runners and promptly stopped to walk once they passed the cameras!



I am pretty sure that is the reason I have a smile on my face as I am passing the cameras



I settled in to a good rhythm fairly quickly once we had run up the first small hill from the start and felt comfortable with the weather conditions without my cap. I had worn my breathable cap in my last two races and my body temperature seemed to be higher than normal, so I decided to go without it for this race.

With over 400 women (700 runners in total) of differing abilities, it didn't take long to begin to pass the skirts. The police had closed off one lane of Hillsborough Street and there was just about enough room to squeeze past the slower runners without having to weave in and out. I have run up the Hillsborough Street hills many times in other races, so I knew what to expect and I went through the first mile in a comfortable 6:56.

The second mile had some flat portions, some up hill portions and the only water stop. The hills seemed harder than the ones on Hillsborough Street, but I knew that I had a long downhill section ahead of me and I focused on getting through the mile as quickly as I could. My fastest 5K in Raleigh was 22:12 back in February and I knew a split of around 7:20 would give me a good chance of beating that time.

When we crested the top of the big hill my watch beeped for a 7:06 mile and I had a great chance of setting a new PR for Raleigh. I told myself to relax on the downhill, lean forward slightly and let my momentum carry me along. The downhill turned in to a flat portion and then with just over a third of a mile to go a final hill appeared. My legs were tired but a quick glance at my watch told me I would be under 22 minutes if I could just get up this hill and down the other side to the finish. I dug deep, shortened my stride and push hard to get myself up the hill.

At the top of the hill, the course turned and the finish was in sight.



I passed the photographers apparently going too fast for the cameras to be able to focus on me!



I crossed the finish line for a time of 21:38 to set a new PR for a race in Raleigh and get within 13 seconds of beating my overall 5K PR. I was really pleased to finally break 22 minutes in Raleigh and prove to myself that I can run quickly in warmer temperatures!

The beer and free food was okay and luckily we didn't get too wet when the storm finally arrived and the rain came down hard. Overall a good event and one that I'd do again in the future.

On Sunday evening I joined Shane and Bridgett for my first McDowell 5K-ish run downtown. Shane and Bridgett had mentioned a few months ago that they had been running around downtown Raleigh for a few miles and then ended at one of the bars for a quick drink/snack and wondered if other people would be interested in joining them - of course, I said I would love to join them as it is nice to run in different places and always good to end a workout with a quick beer! I had missed the last offical running of the 5K-ish (named 5K-ish because it may or may not be 5K, but it really doesn't matter!) as Elizabeth and I were traveling somewhere, and I was excited for my first one.

It typically takes 20 minutes to get from the house to downtown Raleigh, so I had planned to leave with plenty of time to drop Elizabeth off at the final destination of the run and then jog down to meet Shane and Bridgett (about a 0.5 mile jog). Of course, just as I was about to head out the door, my phone rang! So, we left a little later than I had planned and as we started our drive it began to rain quite heavily. I dropped Elizabeth at the pub and sprinted down to the meeting place, arriving a couple of minutes late. Bridgett gave me a cute homemade race bib which I attached to my shirt and we set off at a gentle pace for what turned out to be a hilly 2.5 miles which included a few minutes of pouring rain and then humid conditions as the sun made an appearence.

We finished with an up-hill section dodging over grown plants and trees and made it to the pub to find the staff drying off the outdoor seating for us. A few beers and some onion rings later, I couldn't wait for the next running of the 5K-ish!