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Redondo Beach Super Bowl Sunday 5K - Run5k


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Redondo Beach, California
United States
Redondo Beach Chamber of Commerce
56F / 13C
Sunny
Total Time = 51m 28s
Overall Rank = 1223/1638
Age Group = F 35-39
Age Group Rank = 184/244
Pre-race routine:

So, this is my first race of the 2010 season. My 2009 season ended up having many injuries and not many races, so I hadn't done a tri or a 5k in about a year. I figured a good way to start the season was with a 5k, before heading into a tri or a longer run.

I had tried to sign up for the Surf City 5k on the same day, and was about 8 hours too late! So, I went for Redondo instead. As much as I liked Surf City last year, and was bummed not to return, I am now glad to have done a new race and enjoyed a new course.

On Saturday I drove out to Redondo for packet pick up and the expo. There was a temporary break from the rain, which I hoped would last through race day. The expo was okay...nothing too exciting. I did like getting a nice long sleeved race shirt. I always love me the race shirts!

The night before the race I was out with friends, but was careful and didn't drink or eat anything that would upset my stomach for race day. When I got home I packed up my gear and wanted to go to bed. But I couldn't! I was scheduled to be the "Tooth Fairy" that night, since Chandra had lost a molar, and when I went into her room at 11 pm to turn the tooth into a dollar, she was awake! CRAP! I had to go upstairs and stall and watch TV for half an hour. Finally, I was able to do my toothly job and got to sleep by 11:45. If only I hadn't woken up at 3 am with a bad dream. Grrrrrr. I never sleep well on race nights.

So I was up at 4:45 and bitter about my lack of sleep. I got dressed, had breakfast, stretched, and left.

I had to drive a circuitous route to the race because of blocked streets but finally made it. I was able to park really close, which rocked. None of the races had started yet, but the place was in full swing. The announcer was on the mike a lot and there was some music playing. Tons of people were already there milling around. I was freezing my butt off! The one saving grace was that my hands were toasty! I stole Yanti's idea and brought an old pair of sock to wear on my hands, that I wouldn't mind tossing when the race started!

I walked around a little just to kill time, then found a grassy area to stretch in. I headed over to the street to get in a warm up.
Event warmup:

For some inexplicable reason, my left plantar fascia started hurting as I walked over to Harbor Blvd. WTF??? I hadn't had plantar fascia pain in months. Now I was getting it when I hadn't even so much as walked fast yet? I had been running a bunch with no problems. Why now???

I stretched my calf more and started walking up the street. It hurt walking! This was discouraging! How was I going to run 3.1 miles on a foot that was achy when I walked? Crap. I wasn't sure what to do. Do I race anyway and risk more injury? Do I turn around and go home? I decided on a compromise. I would try to run, but since this 5k was dubbed as a run/walk, I could also walk it. If I had to walk it slowly, I could. I'd still complete the race and still get the nice t-shirt, it just wouldn't be a run PR.

I continued walking for ten minutes. I stopped a few times to stretch, massage my foot, tighten my laces, and adjust my inserts...anything to possibly help the foot ache. I then jogged SLOWLY for about ten minutes and was pleasantly surprised to see it hurt less jogging than walking. Odd.

I made it back a few minutes before the start of the 5k. At this point I was enjoying the fun of the pre-race energy. There is a costume contest, and I loved seeing the creativity that people had! I stretched and hit the porta-johns one last time before going to line up. While I was finding my place in the stall, I saw Chris who was also doing the 5k. We talked for a few minutes, listened to the national anthem, and waited for the horn.
Run
  • 51m 28s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 16m 33s  min/mile
Comments:

The start of races like this always crack me up! I am a slow runner, so I go toward the back of the thousands of people that are racing. The horn goes off, and only those at the front of the pack can move. So I stand there...and stand there...laugh a little with Chris...then stand there some more. Finally, we got to slowly walk forward. It was almost two minutes before we got to the starting mat!

I tried to start jogging but was struggling. This race had a lot more walkers than I realized. I had placed myself amongst most of the walkers, not the slow joggers. The crowd was worse than any open water swim race I've seen! There were people anywhere and I struggled to get around anyone! Who knows how much distance I added to my race by having to zig zag through people. Oh well. At this point I was just happy to see that my foot wasn't hurting...so I kept jogging...dodging walkers...jogging...going around baby strollers...jogging...going around dogs on leashes...but all the while, still jogging!

We headed west on Harbor Blvd. There were a lot of people cheering, which is always fun. The weather was GORGEOUS!!! I was worried it would rain, but the sky could not have been more blue! I had my arm warmers on, but by about 10 minutes into the race, I stuck them in my pockets.

We turned right on Herondo and were now going up a slight hill. It wasn't much of one, but enough of an incline to remind my that my plantar fascia was being sucky! I had to really take it slow, but continued jogging. There was a right at Francisca and when it met up with Catalina, there was the 1 mile marker! It was sooner than I expected and my time, though not spectacular, was better than expected. I was also stoked to reach the first ade station. I was thirsty!

We weren't on Catalina long before it was a left on Elena. There was another climb here. This really slowed me down and I was really babying my foot. But, never had to walk the hill. Just kept plugging along! There were some groups of people in their front yards cheering us on here, which was fun. We soon made a right onto Carnelian and I focused on making up some time on this nice downhill slope.

A quick left on Catalina had me now on the street that I'd be on for most of the second half of the run. I knew I was about halfway finished, and reasoned that if I could jog the first half, I could probably jog the second.

The super fast people were making their way back on the opposite side of the road, and now I really got a better look at the costumes. I saw Scooby Doo, Sponge Bob, Frozone, a bunch of guys in speedos with painted on football jerseys, female football players, male cheerleaders, and all sorts of random characters! At about the 2 mile marker, the "King of Pop" group went by, including someone pushing a huge sound system with Michael Jackson songs blaring! Hilarious!

My pace for the second mile was slower. Usually it is faster, but that uphill, and my hesitance to hurt my foot, kept me at a pace slower than I would normally like to keep. Oh well. At this point, my goal was to keep an even paced jog, not have to walk, and just have a good time.

I got near the turn around and saw Chris heading the other way. I also saw a bagpiper playing for us. Um...okay...not that I don't appreciate bagpipe music, but it is not exactly upbeat running music. Of course, then I passed a tent where "Humpty Dance" was playing. Better selection, at least for racing.

I made the turn around at Ruby and was now heading on Catalina back toward the harbor. The group of gorillas and bananas did overtake us at this time. Watching them dance to "Humpty Dance" was priceless! I also saw the "Run of Shame" girls, dressed in club clothes with giant drink glasses in their hands! Funny! Passed them...but in their defense...they were in boots and stilletos!

As I got to the last half mile or so, I tried to speed up a little, but was very careful. I would normally sprint at this point and give it all I had, but I held back. This is not an "A" race for me, so why jack up my foot for it? I was doing fine, so I held my pace, made the big left hand turn, and was in the finish chute just minutes later!
What would you do differently?:

I think all things considered, I did the best I could. It might have been a better idea to just walk it, but I enjoyed the run so much more.
Post race
Warm down:

I had my chip cut off, then walked around a bit. I found a bottle of water, then headed to my car to get my Endurox. I walked out to the water. The waves were huge and crashing over the jetty! It looked amazing. I called Scott and talked to him while I cooled down.

I got my race shirt out of the car, and headed over to the beer garden. The 10k runners were now out of the course and the 5k runners were chugging Asahis! I had a beer, put on my race shirt, then decided it was time to leave. As I walked back to my car, my cousin called to see about meeting up for lunch.

When I got home, Scott and the kids and I visited and had lunch with our cousins, Kenny, Rob, Kyle, Jeremy, and his girlfriend, Lauren. We had a wonderful lunch out at River's End cafe.

Later that day, Mike and Leo came over for a visit, then I left to go get my post-race massage. That hurt, but got out some of the knots and soreness from the race. After that, it was time for a long jacuzzi soak. Ahhhhhhhhh.....

What limited your ability to perform faster:

My training has been inconsistent due to injuries and time contraints. That seemed to be the most limiting factor, which goes hand in hand with the plantar fascia pain that was the biggest issue.

Event comments:

This is a fun, local 5k. The costume contest adds and element of humor. I like that it was a run/walk as well. It diversified the group that was out there doing it. The course was nice. The post race beer garden was fun too. All in all...a good race. I would definitely come back!




Last updated: 2010-01-13 12:00 AM
Running
00:51:28 | 03.11 miles | 16m 33s  min/mile
Age Group: 184/244
Overall: 1223/1638
Performance: Average
Mile 1 - 15:34; Mile 2 - 17:32; mile 3.1 - 18:21
Course: Loop through the streets in Redondo beach near King Harbor
Keeping cool Good Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 4

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2010-02-08 1:36 PM

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Master
1281
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Long Beach, CA
Subject: Redondo Beach Super Bowl Sunday 5K


2010-02-08 4:46 PM
in reply to: #2661731

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Expert
749
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Subject: RE: Redondo Beach Super Bowl Sunday 5K

Sounds like a fun race!  Now that the season is kicked off I am sure your motivation will be up and training will be GREAT!

2010-02-08 6:26 PM
in reply to: #2661731

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Champion
5781
5000500100100252525
Northridge, California
Subject: RE: Redondo Beach Super Bowl Sunday 5K

Good job getting out there for a "fall back" race when Surf City filled up...now, on to tri season!

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