Bank of America Gasparilla 5K - Run5k

Not in it to race, but to see where I placed. Goal was sub 23:00, but expected sub 24:00 easily.
It was freaking hot. There were way too many people. The start of the race was crazy. It seemed that people were lined up incorrectly, even though the start location was marked for your estimated completion time. I spent the entire run passing people, almost stopping behind a walker, moving back and forth across the course,speeding up and slowing down.
I will never run the 5k again, though I do plan on the less crowded 15k next year.
There were a lot of first timers, which is great, but someone should have helped them on where they should start. I saw runners wearing jeans starting in the sub-25 minute area.
It was very very hot, the volunteers at the water stations were swamped and not handing out water to the runners in the street, but were serving people as they came up to the booth. Rather than wait in line for water, I kept going.
This is the first time I have ever been hurt in a run. Within the first 1/2 mile, someone running on the sidewalk to the right on me slipped and fell elbow first into my forearm. Consequently, I stopped their fall, they didn't get injured, and I have a dark bruise on my arm.

Not run this 5k.

If for some reason, I were to do it again, I would start very very near the front. I believe I should easily have shaved 4 minutes off this time.

Walk around waiting for Jennifer to complete her run. Drink lots of water.


Too many people.
Too many people starting in front of me and then walking.


Although I marked No to organized, that only refers to the starting area. The organization overall was very good. The volunteers were overwhelmed at times. Maybe capping the number of entries at a lower number would help this race.