Oakley 10K Race Recap

I somehow conned Joyce into signing up for the 10K even though she hated running.  She panicked a bit until I told her 10K is 6 miles, not 10 miles.  We trained together a few times and she even started to enjoy running!  We stopped by Lululemon after one run and bought matching skirts to wear to the race.  I even bought a neon pink top to match even though I'm usually a pink-hater.

I wasn't sure if I wanted to try for a PR (my last one was while hungover so I probably could beat that) or pace Joyce in her first 10K.  Given that I had not really trained all week (and had drank and eaten too much) and I have a 10K the next week, I decided to go at an easy pace.  However, in the heat and humidity, even a slower pace was really hard.  Our main goal: get cute race pictures in our matching pink + skirt combo!

We made it to the start just in time and started running along Central Park West.  I tried to stay on the right side the entire time, keeping an eye out for race photographers.  There were some speedwalkers we passed...at first.  Later in the race, they passed us right back up. -_-

I felt like the water stations should have been at every mile, but after mile 1, we didn't get one until the 5K/halfway point.  Running in the shade felt amazing and energized us (especially downhill), but running in the sun was TOUGH!  We were both super sweaty.  Harlem Hills worried me but we trucked up them like pros.  I was thankful we were going clockwise in the park, as we were hitting most of the big hills as downhills.

Coming down on the East Side of the park, I spotted a race photographer and we smiled and waved madly.  Then it occurred to me that I was flapping my bingo wings and the picture may not end up very flattering.  I pointed out bodies of water to motivate Joyce.  We walked through all the water stations to catch our breath and hydrate.

I told Joyce we'd speed up for the last mile, even if it was just slightly.  I tried hitting 10-minute miles, but Joyce sped up to an 11-minute mile.  At 800m, I told her only half a mile left! She replied, that long??  We eventually made it up the West Side of the Park and spotted the finish line.  I looked for Leemo, but he missed us and we missed him.

We took a lot of pictures and somehow ran into Alyssa!  We called Leemo afterward to meet us at the Smith for brunch, where I ate delicious biscuits and gravy with 3 poached eggs.  My stomach was a little unsettled before kayaking, but it calmed down enough to have an enjoyable kayaking experience in the beautiful Five Islands Park in New Rochelle.  I'm SO glad we didn't opt for free kayking in the Hudson.  There's probably a reason it's free...no one wants to touch that filthy water.