Monday, July 4, 2011

I DID IT!

I finally got in the 8s for a race pace!  Today was our local Fourth of July race.  It was a hot one but at least it started early.  There was a great turn out.  This race was started by a young couple who moved to town and thought Bristol had a great Fourth of July but needed a road race.  It has grown every year. It is very casual and lots of adults and kids who don't race often do it.  I had one student running :) and one former student. Both ran with their parents.

This year the race was more special due to sad circumstances.  The wife of the couple died slightly less than a year ago of Hodgekins lymphoma at the age of 41.  She left behind her husband and 3 sons. The oldest will be an 8th grader and the youngest will be in third grade next year. (in my class)  I haven't taught either of the other boys but our school is small enough that I know them.  Many of Pam's relatives raced including her father.  The race was renamed the Pam Paradee Bristol 5K.  It was nice to see so many people turn out for it.  It's a well organized low key race.

The route was changed slightly from previous years. I ran with my IPod for the first time in a long time and I think it helped.  My first mile was 8:44. The second was 9:17. This was the one with the hill. I knew I couldn't fade if I was going to end up with a pace in the 8s.  My third mile was 8:54 with the last tenth being 8:27. I wasn't sure if I had done it until I checked my Garmin!  Yeah!  My overall pace was 8:58. I was soaked as it was humid!  I had to rush home and change to get back down for the parade. The Fourth of July is in a big thing in Bristol. I never get to see them but there are outhouse races in between the race and the parade. These were featured on the Today Show one year.  They take bets and the money must go to the Fourth of July festivities. I am not sure.

So home, clean up and I decided (along with my husband) to bike to town.  Traffic is crazy so this seemed to be the way to go. By the time we came home it was hot hot hot. I decided to continue the ride further which may not have been brilliant as I was wiped when I got home.

Back to the parade.  First when I went to the race at 7:00 I saw several people already sitting on the parade route waiting for the parade. Now it is a decent small town parade (the governor was in it)  but it isn't any Macy's Day Parade. You do not need to secure your seat at 7 in the morning. It starts at 10:30.  Yes it gets very crowded but really?   3 1/2 hours early?  Fortunately we have friends who live on the parade route so we don't need to worry.

A Few Parade Pics

Clowns

Many many many firetrucks

What would a Vermont parade be without tractors?

And even some floats!

 

31 comments:

Char said...

Fantastic result! That's a PR for this year isn't it?!

A Prelude To... said...

Great race!!! I love the 8s and can't wait until I start visiting them more frequently!!

Enjoy the rest of your 4th of July!

Running and living said...

Congrats on the 8th. Super!

justme said...

great accomplishment

Pahla said...

Congratulations!! What a terrific race!
I love all the parade pics, of course. Those floats are so cool! Our local parade has a lot of fire trucks, too, but my favorites are all the high school marching bands.

Michael said...

Great race!! Congrats!! I would kill for a pace in the 8s...or the 9s...or the 10s...for that matter. Maybe some day! Amazing job!

Oh, and Tri shoes are more of a minimalist shoe. They are light weight and made of a kind of dry wick type material that's supposed to help them dry faster. I don't know....I really just thought they were really cute :)

Anne said...

Congrats!! That is so amazing that you got into the 8's! I'm super impressed and totally inspired :)

Patrick Mahoney said...

I would love a parade like that. I obviously enjoy where I live and all, but Huntington Beach is a War Zone on the 4th. Ughhh. Might have been cool when I was 20, but not anymore.

Congrats on the run, always awesome to have new number to the left of the ":".

Average Woman Runner said...

Nice job with the race pace! I wish we had a 4th of July parade...seems odd that we don't. Like the float pictures, can't have a parade without pirates!

Anonymous said...

What an excellent day! And congrats on hitting that race pace!!!

Amy said...

Congratulations on a great race!
So sad to hear about those kids losing their mom - things like that always make me think about how lucky I am to be healthy and alive...

Johann said...

Yes, now I see why you are happy with your race! Congratulations! I just realized we don't have many parades here in SA. Strange, but it is something that just doesn't happen here...?

Jennifer said...

What an excellent accomplishment! Nice number and you deserve it too. Cool parade, I especially love the boat float, so creative!

Fran said...

First of all: congrats on your new car.

Second: congrats on the race, awesome result!

I love the parades that are being held in the US on special days. Something we do have here in Holland but not very often. In my town never.

Ewa said...

8s! Congrats.
Isn't it cool to see your students racing? I am sure you inspired them.
That looks like a very cool parade. Glad to see communities celebrating. Here in CA several towns canceled fireworks because of budget problems. :(

Suzy said...

Congrats on getting into the 8's!! And on a warm day to boot. The parade sure looks like fun.

Laura said...

Holy!! Congrats! I am going to be channelling you in my next race.

Giorgio said...

Good race! I think you enjoyed it although the weather was hot. I always like races with lots of adults and kids :)

Nice photos! It seems a great parade of old firetrucks and tractors.

Kandi said...

Great job getting down to the 8s!!
What are outhouse races?

Michelle said...

Way to go on those 8s!!

I love, love, love that house in the background! My style of house!

Unknown said...

woooooooohooooooooooo!!!!!

Marlene said...

Sounds like a great day at the race and the parade! Happy 4th of July! Congrats on the sub-9:00 race!!

Anonymous said...

8:58! Look at you! Great job! I will now adjust my expectations accordingly!

Anonymous said...

YYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

LookingUpAgain said...

Great job with that pace! Speedy!

Glad you had a wonderful 4th. It's great to live in America :)

Anonymous said...

Wow, way to go!!

Richelle said...

Awesome job at your 5K race!

Tractors are a staple at a lot of Minnesota parades, too. I would love to see an outhouse race. That sounds hilarious!

Teamarcia said...

Congrats on the speedy race!
We saw our share of parade tractors here in Maine as well. Very cute!

HappyTrails said...

Made it to the 8's - WAY TO GO!! You need ice cream or something after that accomplishment ;-) How's the new red car doing???

Tara said...

Congratulations, that is awesome!

Darlene said...

Congrats!!!!!!!!!!!!!!