This race was run from Uptown Park in the Galleria area. We had a 5am wake up for about a 5:50 leaving, were there by 6:30, easily. Packet pick-up was simple, but then I wandered all around looking for a restroom. Turns out that they only had about 10 portapotties hidden behind a tall hedge. You actually had to walk through a flowerbed to get to them, once you found them. Then they were positioned on a slight slope, so in order to do my patented hover, my head was practically touching the door. The whole thing felt like it was going to fall backwards at any moment. It was so unsettling that I was barely able to even make myself pee!
There were lots of nice benches for waiting with P and Z, so that part was nice. And when 7:30 rolled around, we were off.
It was hot. Probably 85 degrees, and the sun was up. The roads were pretty crappy, cambered, uneven surface, and not wide enough for the number of runners. This and the portapotties are the primary reasons I wouldn't do this race again. From the start it was just a matter of fighting it out, for me.
There was one awesome police officer that was actually clapping and cheering as he minded his intersection. Gotta say: that is so cool!!
I finished in 31:17.8 for 10:05/mi. Far slower than my last 5K, but also in far hotter conditions. I was exactly halfway down in my age group.
The post-race party wasn't anything to write home about, either. I couldn't find bananas, if they had any. The only noticeable food was a small table of something catered(?) that had an insanely long line. So we headed out.
I do love racing on holidays - really makes me feel better about relaxing and eating for the rest of the day!
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