Washington DC's Cherry Blossom 10 miler is my favorite race all year! It's so popular that there's a lottery system set up in order to race! Last year, I missed out on the race because I didn't make the lottery. This year, I didn't make it again but I was determined to run....I bid on someone's bib and make the transfer into my name!
I think the reason why I love this race so much is the course - It starts at the National Monument, crosses over Memorial Bridge, along Rock Creek Parkway, around Tidal Basin, around Hains Point, and make our way to the finish back at National Monument.
My trick for motivating myself to run races is treating myself right before the race with a new outfit for race day. I feel like I deserve a little treat after endless weeks of training. I don't know why, but this motivates me to get out of bed at 5:30 am to run these things! New purchases below....
The race went well but this year the course felt long to me. I don't know what it was about running around the Tidal Basin this year, but I was ready to finish!
Mile 1: Ran with a friend & her sister-in-law. We spend most of the mile on the grass trying to pass people and find our pace.
Mile 2: Found my pace and was loving the spectators cheering us on
Mile 3: Starting digging for my energy Jelly Belly's (already??)
Mile 4: I found it interesting at this point that I was sweating, yet I could see my breath in the air (it was about 48 degrees out)...that's all I could really think about
Mile 5: The water stations kept switching from the right to left so I was keeping an eye out for the next stop. I felt pretty thirsty throughout the race and stopped at every water stop, which probably hurt my time a little in the end
Mile 6: Pandora finally started playing good music, started to speed up this mile
Mile 7: Pandora started acting up so I was focusing on my phone and trying to get that good music back on for the final 2 miles
Mile 8 - 9: To be honest, at this point I just wanted the race to be over! The course goes uphill for the last half mile or so. I took off towards the start of the hill but about 0.25 miles from the finish, I slowed down a bit
Mile 10: Finally, I felt so glad this race was over! Ok, where's the metro!?
I ended up with a pretty good time, 9:54 pace. I was happy with that - I wanted to finish under 10:00 pace and that was accomplished! Now, after the half marathon two weeks ago and this 10 miler...I think I am taking a running break for a bit!
The best part of races = food after! After the race, we went to a delicious brunch at Founding Farmers. I love this place! It's all natural and healthy ingredients from local farmers. I have decided I need to start getting back to eating well since I am no longer training for races. I enjoyed a delish Veggie Omlett with Spinach, side of fruit, and a biscuit with apple butter. We'll definitely go back here in the near future!
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