Movie Madness 5k

Well, today was race day for my Movie Madness 5k virtual race. I earned another beautiful piece of race bling today, and as often happens, gained new insights into myself, virtual racing and running itself.

The weather today was great! A little chilly, but I don't mind the cold too much. I geared up, pinned my number on, set my Nike app for distance run and headed out the door. 

 My thoughts were on my foot turnover...short, quick, light was my mantra. My playlist rocked out my favorite songs as I churned out the miles. I raced through my neighborhood streets trying to imagine other runners out there pouring their hearts into the race just like me. Before I knew it I was at the halfway point. "Keep going. You've got this. Just keep moving." I told myself. The effort was definitely there today. "1.1 miles to go" my app informed me. I know the course has just one more big hill to go. As I climbed that last hill I knew I was pushing as my legs were getting achy and my breathing heavier. Cresting the hill I knew the rest of my course was easy. I cruised to the finish in 28:28, not a PR, but a solid effort nonetheless!

Now, as I was saying, every race gives me new perspective on myself and the sport I love. The first thing I want to say is best effort does not always equal a personal record, and that's totally ok! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE PRs! That is a goal when I head out to race, but as long as when you cross the finish you know that you left everything on the road...that you put every ounce of yourself into it, then it's a race to be proud of!! The next thing I want to say is I love the mental discipline virtual racing develops. It takes a certain mental toughness to get out there and race when there isn't a crowd pushing you. I truly enjoy live races where you can feed off the collective adrenaline rush, but I also take some pride in knowing I have it in me to push myself at those same levels whenever I want. 

     Now, for the virtual race website I did this race through. This race was through U.S. Road Racing (link on the upper right hand side of my blog) and it's the second one I've done with them. I'm super happy  with this site! Medal delivery is prompt, the medals are beautiful, and totally affordable! The site is easy to navigate, and it truly feels like a race when you pull up the results page and see where you rank among the others running the race. I highly recommend them!

     Next on my race calender is the Pi Day 5k. I signed up for it in mid-January, and I'm glad I did because it ended up selling out! I'm looking forward to receiving my race packet :) For now I'm going to relax and enjoy my own little movie marathon and look for some new virtual racing adventures. Have a great evening everyone!!