My First 5k!

My sister, Kelby, talked me into signing up for a 5k race Father's Day weekend.  The 5k was the Covered Bridge Run in Glen Carbon.  From the day we signed up until the day of the race we had about 3 weeks to train.  Leading up to the race it was miserably hot out and I was worried about the weather, I had been running outside but it was in the evenings when the temperature was cooler.

June 18th, race day morning arrived and the weather could not have been more perfect!!  Low 70's, sunny, and not a cloud in the sky.  Kelby and I went down to the race a little early to get lined up and take a few pictures.

We decided to pace ourselves in the middle of the pack.  I didn't really know what to expect going into the race.  My goal was to not walk, I know its only 3.1 miles but I haven't ran since high school soccer!

The gun shot and we were off.  I didn't realize Bill had brought the boys down to watch the beginning of the race, but I was excited he did because he got some good pictures of us running.

On our way back to the finish line.  The race was a big loop along the bike trails.

 We finished and did not walk one time!

Once we were able to catch our breath, we realized the results were posted at the finish line.  Kelby and I could not believe our eyes.  Kelby ran the 5k in 28:51 with a 9:18/mile pace.  I ran the 5k in 28:52 with a 9:19/mile pace. Kelby beat me by 1 second, but because she was in a younger age group, placing her in 4th for her age group, I placed 3rd for my age group!  Sometimes it pays to be older!

 Blake was pretty excited to see my chunk of wood!

 Below are some professional pictures taken at the race.

I had a great time training and taking on this new adventure with Kelby.  We would text each other everyday on our times and distances when training.  The energy I felt while running was what I felt when competing in sports during school.  I don't know if I will ever run anything higher than a 5k, but Kelby and I are already planning our next 5k run.  I feel so blessed I was able to complete this with not only my sister, but one of my best friends by my side.