Races #2 and #3 and #4 and #5

Ideally, I want to recap each race individually but, things have just sort of gotten away from me and here I am, writing about FOUR races at once. This is a lot to sum up so I’ll keep it short.

Race #2: Quicker Quaker 5K (part of the Lafayette Oatmeal Festival)

• Date: January 10th
• Type: Run
• Distance: 5K (but it was shortened to about 2.7 miles due to icy conditions)
• Shwag: Entry to the most amazing oatmeal breakfast ever + a tub of Quaker Oats + a pencil (anyone have a sharpener I can borrow?)

Shwag

Embrace the oatmeal!

Guest Stars - Jenny and Steph

What can I say? This was a fantastic community event and I’ll definitely do it again. An easy-going and laid back 5K through Lafayette, Colorado. $20 gets you entry to the race and the Oatmeal Festival Breakfast, which costs $8 on its own. The breakfast includes an amazing oatmeal bar with hundreds of toppings + pancakes + muffins + good coffee + milk and cream from the Longmont Dairy. . 

Due to some icy conditions, the race was cut short so after a 2.7 mile jog, Jenny, Steph and I were ready for breakfast. There are literally hundreds of topics to choose from at the oatmeal bar so my advice is to go in with a plan. I opted for oatmeal with nutella, banana, bacon, and pecans. Not too bad, if I say so myself. 

Oatmeal Bar. Awesome but a little overwhelming. 

Race #3: Chilly Cheeks Duathlon #2

• Date: January 18th
• Type: Duathon
• Distance: 15ish (1.5 run, 3.6 bike, 2.5 run, 7.2 bike, then a really awkward run to the finish line in bike shoes) 
• Shwag: Sweatpants (not new sweatpants, the same ones as before) 

Not too much to report from the Chilly Cheeks race. It was a sunny but windy day and I wasn’t too thrilled about riding in the wind. Since I already have the sweatpants, there wasn’t a huge obligation for me to show up. But I did. I felt pretty crummy for the first 15 - 20 minutes of the race but then settled in and finished feeling pretty good. Overall, I had a decent race, especially considering I hadn’t ridden my bike since the last Chilly Cheeks race.Did I learn my lesson? Will I ride my bike between Chilly Cheeks #2 and #3? Probably not.  

Race #4: Estes Park Frost Giant 5K

• Date: January 25th
• Type: Run
• Distance: 5K (at altitude and uphill, with some "off road" fun)
• Shwag: Long-sleeve tech shirt

The Frost Giant races were recommended by my friend Dan. Billed as a great event and a way to knock out two races in one day, I decided to sign up. Dan and Josh were both signed up for the 10K but, against his better judgement, Josh decided to sign up for the 5K too. Even though he regretted the extra mileage, he won a $20 gift certificate to the Estes Park liquor store in the post-race raffle so I’d say it was worth it. 

Liz also decided to join the fun at the last minute and was rewarded for her efforts with a six pack of beer AND 3rd place in her age group. Not bad for her first race in over two years! 

Knowing that I had another 10K to go, I took the race easy and paced myself, which isn’t easy to do when you’re running at that altitude. This was one of the toughest 5K’s I’ve done; it started up hill, then went through through a field (not a trail - a field with grass and snow and holes and all sorts of challenges. The race ended with a mile of downhill pavement, directly into a headwind. Tough conditions but a great race overall. After a quick change of shoes and some hydration, I was onto the 10K!.

Frost Giant Shwag

Race #5: Estes Park Frost Giant 10K

• Date: January 25th
• Type: Run
• Distance: 10K (at altitude, uphill, and “off road”)
• Shwag: Long-sleeve tech shirt + 3rd place ribbon for my age group (and there were more than three of us!)

I guess the race organizers didn’t think the 5K had enough uphill because the 10K has even more. Instead of the more gradual hill up to the field that we took in the 5K, the 10K route starts up an even steeper hill. You know it’s bad when you’re walking within the first 200 yards of the race. But, it was all part of my strategy. Why run up hill when you can waste less energy walking and go pretty much just as fast?   

I figured there would be plenty of time to use up my energy on the rest of the run and I was right. The 10K had more than twice as much off-road fun as the 5K. It was a challenging course, especially for my ankles, but there were plenty of rewards. For example, after a small uphill patch in the woods, I came upon two large, majestic looking Elk standing quietly between the trees, so close that I could see the steam coming out of their nostrils. Amazing. I stopped for a bit to take it all in before hurling myself down a snowy hill.     

After lots of traversing of hills and fields, the 10K ended with the same stretch of downhill as the 5K, which is good for someone who likes to run downhill. I ran the last mile as fast as my legs would go but since I still had a decent amount left in the tank at the end, I probably should have pushed it a little more during the race. Good to know. It was also good to know that I was able to cover that distance, at altitude, and that I felt strong and consistent for the entire distance. Honestly, I can’t remember the last time I ran more than four miles so this was a good test for me. AND I came in third in my age group. True, there were only eight people in my age group but whatever. I’ll take it!

10K Course Map

Me, Liz, and Josh

Winners!