Saturday, January 18, 2014

Hartsville Turkey Trot 5k Race Recap

 

Thanksgiving morning I got up bright and early for the annual Hartsville Turkey Trot 5k race. It has become a tradition to do this 5k before stuffing myself with food. This year was special because my husband and my mom joined in along with my friends! We hit the road for Hartsville around 6:40am and arrived at the Hartsville Y around 7:15. There was plenty of time for a bathroom stop and a 1 mile warm up.

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It was super chilly but I was so thankful to be doing what I love with some of the people that I love the most! My husband is not a runner per se and my mom is a walker. I am some ways have passed the runner’s “bug” onto them!

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The only picture I have of me finishing since my husband, who is usually the photographer, was running! I sure hope I beat that guy who is rocking baggy clothes and cotton! Get some lycra, dude!

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The husband finishing up; even he knows not to wear baggy cotton! ;)

Unfortunately there is no picture of mom finishing. I ran back to find her on the course and wasn’t there to take a picture but she did great despite the hills. I lied and told her there was only 1 so she would do the race with me. There were actually 3. Oops!

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I love racing with friends. It’s like Where’s Waldo trying to find me in this picture but I promise I am there. Stupid shadow!

My time was 23:00 even. I should have checked my watch because I could have pushed it more to get under 23. Oh well, my time was good enough for 1st place in the 25-29 age group and an oh so groovy bag that I will never use!

Cheers to the next race,

Britton

Honda Turkey Run 10k…

 

…and my mom’s first 5k as an official runner (Saturday, November 9, 2013). I am super excited that my mom decided to go to this race with me and run it as a registered runner. She loves to walk and walks over an hour everyday. I convinced her she needed to throw some running in there and do a 5k. Today was the day! She has done several races, but they have all been as a walker!

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us with turkey

 

I ran a 46:10 10k. It was not my best but not my worst either. I felt pretty good so I was happy. I came in 2nd in the 26-30 age group.

Mom ran a 34:54 which was good for 3rd place in the 56-60 category! Whoop whoop! She ran the whole thing too. I was a proud daughter!! I cant wait for many more races with my family!!

 

*britton*

Viva Las Vegas Part III – Our Last Hurrah

 

After the race we all went back, showered, and headed down to this cute little pizza place in the Aria. It was delicious! We were exhausted so we went straight back to the rooms and crashed.

Monday we slept in and then hit up brunch at Hash House a Go Go. This place looked kind of like a hole in the wall but their dishes were so unique and boy were they big!!

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After brunch, Lauren and I walked all the way to the Fashion Mall which was an accomplishment! It was such a long walk but the mall was worth it.

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On the way back we stopped at Serendipity's for a frozen hot chocolate treat. It was amazing and so worth every step of that walk.

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Then we laid around the hotel until it was time to get ready for our last night in Vegas. We had dinner reservations at Aquaknox which is located in the Venetian hotel. It was a five star restaurant.

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After dinner, we headed to Treasure Island for the Mystere Cirque Du Soleil show. It was a good show and we all enjoyed some laughs together!

The next morning we got up and packed and headed to the airport. Sad to leave, but ready to get back to normal life and our baby!

Overall, Las Vegas was an awesome trip. I didn’t fall in love with it (probably because I lost all my money) but we had an awesome time!

*britton*

Viva Las Vegas Part II…Las Vegas Half Marathon

 

Sunday morning, we slept in and got out usual coffee and breakfast with the group. We had no plans for the day until it was time to get ready to race. It turned out to be a beautiful day weather wise so we relaxed in the hotel room and then hit the pool at the Aria. We lounged by the pool and took advantage of the hot tubs as well.

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We got ready for the race and met the others in the casino downstairs. There were buses at our hotel that took us straight to the start line. That was wonderful. As big as Las Vegas is and as big as the race is, it took us no time to get from the hotel to the start. We were there with over an hour to spare and we got to use the bathrooms before they were destroyed!

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The Las Vegas race has a 10k as well so we stood/sat around and watched and cheered for the 10k’ers. We also got to see the couples who registered to be married at the start line of the race. Yes, they actually paid and there was a ceremony at the start line just before the race start! The bride/groom costumes were pretty awesome and creative!

The the gun went off and we were on our way down the strip. We ran to the famous sign and turned around and went all the way down to Old Las Vegas and then made a loop in the middle of nowhere and came back on the strip for the last 4 miles.

There was a photo – op at the famous sign and I decided not to stop. I was feeling pretty good so I wanted to stay on track for a 1:45 finish. Little did I know that I was going to fall apart at mile 8. Between the amount of walking that we did sightseeing and the little rest, it caught up with me in a major way.

I felt good until mile 8. My legs started getting wobbly and each step got harder and harder. So what is a girl to do?! Slow down, enjoy the scenery, and pose for every darn camera she sees; and that is exactly what I did.

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I finished with a time of 1:54:07 and with a smile on my face! Not all races can be run fast and well. I learned that lesson well at this race. The experience of being in a new place and running down an amazing street full of lights was totally worth it!

After finishing, I found a corner of the street right in front of the Bellagio and sat and waited for the crew to all finish. I found Michael and we sat together for a few and then it hit me. The runners plague….stomach issues. I had to go. I left Michael, climbed a fence (which was probably illegal), found a side door that was unlocked, and scoured the mall in the Bellagio for a restroom.

Yall this is TMI but I had to stop in this fancy mall twice and sit down because it was so bad. I headed up the stairs and I finally found one. There were runners everywhere and I just knew I was going to have to wait but there was not a single person in line. Hallelujah, God was watching out for me. I was starting to feel really sick.

I sat down in the mall right outside the bathroom and waited for the husband and Michael to find me so we could walk back to the Aria. I had left all of my finish line food and water on the street so I had nothing to eat. I was still feeling queasy but thank goodness for my husband. He had water in his book bag and snacks. I felt so much better once I got up and started walking and put something in my stomach!

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Everyone else made there way back to the hotel on their own so these are the only pictures after the finish. All in all, it was a great race and I would totally recommend it! I would suggest to them, though, that they need porta-potties at the finish line next time!!!!

Cheers,

Britton