This morning I ran the Raccoon Mountain Round the Rim 10K race. I ran this race back in 2010 and have always said I wanted to run it again some day. The timing finally worked out and three years and a pregnancy later I got to do just that.
I knew the course would be difficult and I knew I wasn't what I use to be - timewise... I've got some work to do! Actually I need to make training more of a priority but having an eight month old and three very active older daughters I'm finding that to be very tough.
Anyways back to this morning. I had been keeping a close eye on the weather all week. They were calling for rain. I knew some people were not even going to bother with it because of that. Honestly, I contemplated not even going. The race officials said the race would start rain or shine. I had already paid my entry fee and I really wanted my shirt so I drove to Chattanooga early that morning. It of course was raining. I picked up my packet and went and sat in my car. Was I crazy? Did I really want to run in this monsoon? Are all these people crazy too? I sat in my car until right before they fired the gun. I stood there... Should I do it or should I not? An older man said "just tie your shoes a little tighter, you are not going to get any wetter than you already are." He was right. I was soaked. I was there. Might as well run. I was one of the last runners to cross that start line but I did.
I don't think I have ever ran in elements as tough as that. On top of that mountain the wind was blowing the sleet into the side of my face. It stung! My Ipod (even though I had it in a ziploc bag) stopped working because it got wet. Thankfully, I was smart enough not to wear my Garmin. 6.2 miles in the cold rain, up a mountain, without my music and without my Garmin. It definitely turned into a mental race. It really bothered me that I did not know how fast/slow I was going. At the end it didn't matter. I was proud. I did it.
Official time - 1:07:34
4th in my age group! Guess everyone else was slowed down a little too!
My 2010 time for the same course - 57:59
I'll get back to that. :)
