Tardy Race Recap & Onederland (Yet Again)

Sooooo . . . I know, I procrastinate.  Wild Hog 10 km race recap here we go.  First of all, I know lots of people probably had a miserable time because it was wet wet wet but we had a great time.  On the Friday, we made the 2 hour drive across the border into Grand Forks, ND.  Checked into our super cheap Travelodge (it was clean and had wifi & breakfast, SOLD!), and then went to the expo to get our race kits.  We got a glass and a great pair of socks and I must say, I actually like the race shirts. Long sleeved and not white!  They were navy blue.  Then we hit the pasta dinner which was actually super tasty and very convenient.  Especially since I knew there was a lot of out of towners so restaurants would be busy etc.

Next, was a quick stop at Scheel's looking for race fuel and an ear warmer -- success on both counts.  I tried a new fuel (totally not supposed to do that on race day, I know).  I forget what they are called but they are almost like jujubes and I think they are made by GU.  I will definitely use them again.  Then back to the hotel to lay out our stuff for the early morning.

This is when we both started wondering what the hell we were thinking when we were packing.  We knew it was going to be cool and possibly raining.   All the forecasts said that.  And yet, NEITHER of us packed our running jacket and Steph didn't have a long sleeved shirt.  (Luckily, the race shirt was long sleeved so she ended up wearing that).  What's even funnier is that I actually packed two garbage bags for us.  The last time I showed up at a race where it was raining, I noticed many had garbage bags they were wearing until the start and then they peeled it off after the race started so they didn't get wet and cold while waiting.  So yes, I had garbage bags and no jacket.

6 am, the alarm goes off and it's pouring and cold.  We're dreading it.  We get ready, we drive there, get an awesome parking spot and decide we are waiting in the car till the last possible minute.  We were so early too.  I was prepared for traffic and there was none.  We napped for about 30 minutes in the car.

Once it got closer to time, we made cut head & arm holes in our garbage bags and ran to bag check.  I actually ran with no music and no phone at all because I was worried about the rain.  Got to the start and everyone is jumping up and down and shivering.  I was so happy for the garbage bags.  I was bone dry.  Then we're off!!!  A couple weeks earlier, I had just run 5 km straight for the first time ever.  Slowly but running.  For this race, I decided I would at least run the first 5 km and then after that, anything else would be the new longest distance I'd ever run.  I RAN THE WHOLE THING!  I couldn't believe myself.  Again, slowly but I ran it.  I kept my pace as steady as I could so that I could keep it up and my time ended up only being 17 seconds off my personal best.  I also left the garbage bag on for almost the whole race.  It was so chilly out and my arm holes were big enough to give me plenty of ventilation.  At one point, I ripped a hole in the back too.  Then at about 5 3/4 miles, I pulled it off so I could cross the line bag free.  We even got those silver race blankets.  It's crazy how much warmer you feel with one of those wrapped around you.  I thought it was pretty cool.  I'd never been at a race with those.  Also, because our phones were in our bag check, we don't have photos of the garbage bags or the silver blankets!!  Booooo.  On our bib was drink ticket and it was booze!  We both got a Mike's Hard BLack Cherry Lemonade and it was soooo good.  I had a few sips and then decided maybe pounding a 16 0z 8% alcoholic beverage after running 10 km and then driving back to the hotel isn't wise.  I didn't know exactly where the food was and we were freezing so we decided Starbucks was a better option.  I really didn't want to waste my Mike's though and I had a water bottle in the car.  I dumped the water and filled it with Mike's and put it in the trunk (GO ME!)  Then we stopped at Starbucks for some well-deserved Salted Caramel Mochas and cake pops.

My Salted Caramel cake pop reminds me of those Little People toys.  Bahaha!

Next up, we showered and hit Qdoba for lunch, so love that place, and so wish we had one.  Then we shopped, shopped, shopped.  And I bought some shoes for Zumba so that I'm not wearing out my running shoes.  I googled and everyone seems to love the Nike Free for Zumba so I bought those in a super bright colour.  Also good to have different shoes because these were half the price of my running shoes.

After shopping, we unloaded our purchases at the hotel and headed to Buffalo Wild Wings for supper.  There was a 40 minute wait so we sit in the lounge and it's pretty much the same as sitting in the restaurant.  I love those deep fried pickles.  And I got a delicious wrap and a Redd's Apple Ale that tasted like punch.  I could have sucked another one back for sure.  The next day was a Target stop and then hit the road home.  Always nice to get away for the weekend.

Now for Onederland -- the scale was playing all kinds of tricks with me.  UP a bunch then down a bunch and then down a few more and I'm at 199.2 this morning.  It's funny because I'm excited to be under 200 but I really need to get further away from it in order to be more excited.  I've hit it a couple time in the last year or two and only for a short time.  I think I'll get more excited when I'm 5 - 10 away from the 2 mark.  

This weekend we have another 10 km coming up!  I've only run twice since the last one a couple weeks ago.  Bad Michelle.  Bad.  Hopefully, it won't be terrible :)

Now I'm off to try to empty my PVR.  This new tv season has me scrambling!