My First 5K as Race Director

Seven months ago I jumped in both feet to coordinating and directing a 5K fundraiser for Emma's school. Lots of people told me it couldn't be done...that we wouldn't make any money...and it would cost thousands of dollars to put on.

From the beginning I called the 5K "God's event" and felt confident we would see success. I forged ahead despite all the nay-sayers and formed a wonderful committee with some godly, hard-working moms. We went to work!

The end result was a 5K fun run that took place this morning in Monument Valley Park. It only cost us $2,000 to host, and we raised $15,700! Yes, you read that right! Through corporate sponsors, registrations and a pledge contest among the elementary students (they raised $6,500 on their own), we raised $15,700!!!! And we had 250 participants!!!

Highlights of the event were live music by Christian recording artist (and CSCS alum) Danny Oertli; the Chick-fil-A cow handing out coupons and helping us start the fun run; lots of freebies from our corporate sponsors, including goodie bags with great coupons; the 2011 Colorado Marathon winner (and my dear friend) Connilee Walter as our lead rabbit; free massages from Rockrimmon Chiropractic, a beautiful course along the river and through the trees with a view of Pikes Peak, and gorgeous weather!

God blessed us ways in we never imagined, and yet I dreamed big and prayed big and believed God would show up big. And when God does big, He does BIG!

This is my 5K committee. I am blessed to call them my friends and to have their wonderful ideas and hard work on my team.

Chalking the starting line.

Danny Oertli added so much fun and excitement to the morning.

My parents and sister's family came up from Pueblo. My Dad had double knee replacements four months ago, and he walked the entire 5K! I was so proud of him and his accomplishment. This was also the first 5K for my mom and my sister's entire family! They were awesome!

The Chick-fil-A cow added lots of fun for the kids. Take note of my shirt and visor, which both say "Race Director." Tim surpised me with them last night. I loved it!

Tim and his business partner, Jack, were our premier sponsors. Rockrimmon Chiropractic is awesome!!!

Nate and Tim cheering on the runners and walkers.

My sister Cynthia and niece Samantha.

Mom and Dad with my mother-in-law pushing Nate.

I love this picture of my Dad!

My sweet friend, Connilee, as our lead rabbit. She won the Colorado Marathon 2 weeks ago!

My brother-in-law Jeff with Emma and my niece.

My sister-in-law Judi!

My niece Jesse.

Danny Oertli having a great time playing some great music!

Emma sprinting to the finish.

And her time is...37:18! Well done Emma on your first 5K!

Some of the finest walkers on the course!

My niece Jesse finished in 30:02.

Jesse helping her Mama across the finish line.

Me and Kalie and Emma after their great finish. (Kalie finished just ahead of Emma.)

Me and my dear friend Stephanie. She was one of my biggest cheerleaders!

Free massages from Rockrimmon Chiropractic.

Part of the 5K volunteers. CSCS produces the finest volunteers I've ever had the pleasure of working with!

Emma and her cousin Sam.

Nayda works for Tim. She brought her husband and three of her five kids out to run. They did great!

I want to give God all the praise and glory for the success of the 5K fun run. He has been so gracious to us, and I look forward to what He will do next year. But for now....I need a LOOOOOONG nap!

From THAT to THIS

This time last year I was training for my first-ever 5K. It was called 5K on St. Patrick's Day, which I chose because it was a completely flat course (hard to find in Colorado) and the weather was perfect for spring running. It was a great experience and ended up being the first of 6 races that I would run last year. I planned to do the same race again this year.

But...here we are...one week from the St. Patrick's Day race...and I have yet to sign up. It's not from lack of motivation or training. I continue to run 5 or 6 days a week and often run 5Ks as a regular part of my workouts. This is where I went from THAT to THIS.

Last year I was just a runner. This year...I find myself still running...but I am now also coordinating a 5K. COORDINATING. Not just helping. Not just being on a committee. I am THE race director. I don't say this with great pride...but with fear and trembling!

It all started when I ran a 5K fundraiser last year for a friend's school. She mentioned to me how much money the school made on that race, and I thought, "Why are we not doing this for Emma's school?" I suggested the idea to a friend, who is the PTO president, and she suggested I propose such an event at a PTO meeting. (Little did I know at the time that proposing the idea also meant coordinating the event. Lesson learned!)

So here we are...5 months into planning our event...2 1/2 months to go till race day...and I have yet to sign up for a single race this year. I am neck-deep in 5K planning and fundraising. It's fun...it's all-consuming...its rewarding...its my new passion.

I used to be a THAT (beginning runner), now I am a THIS (5K coordinator). It's weird to be on this side of things, but it has given me great appreciation for the people who host race events. So next time you are on the race course, thank those volunteers. They've put countless hours, time and energy into you having a great race experience.

P.S. For more information on the 5K FunRun I am coordinating for Colorado Springs Christian Schools, click here. We would love to have you join us!

Denver Rock-N-Roll Marathon

Yesterday I ran the Denver marathon with a relay team. It was interesting to say the least. I had had such a great experience at my first marathon relay in Oklahoma City that I thought it would be fun to do it again. It was fun to hang out with these awesome ladies and run with them, but I learned not all races are created equal.

The Denver marathon was not well organized. They didn't offer shuttle service for the relay runners, so it was a logistical nightmare getting us to our exchange points and then picked up again. A HUGE thanks to Kisti's aunt who took on this enormous job! They also ran out of medals. How does that happen in a race where you know exactly how many people are running?! Fortunately, everyone on my team was able to get a medal before we left town.

Despite all that, we had a great race! Everyone ran the pace they had hoped for (I was even a little faster at under a 10 minute mile...my personal best.), and it was a beautiful day.

The night before the race we went to the Expo and had so much fun scoring freebies! We laughed all night!

Then we headed to the Spaghetti Factory where we laughed and laughed some more and tried to figure out the best route for getting around to the exchange points the next day.

The first leg - Kira!

The second leg - ME!

The third leg - Kisti!

The fourth leg - Pam!

Our awesome team - Between The Lines!

Thanks ladies for a great weekend! And now I am taking a break from racing for the winter. Next up: 5K on St. Patricks Day 2011.

Duathlon Thoughts

As we arrived at the reservoir for my first duathlon I was very excited! It was a small event - only 156 women - so it was race morning bib pick up and check in. It went so smoothly, and since there wasn't a line I had plenty of time to set up my transition area. I loved how laid back the morning felt, and I enjoyed sitting with my family for a half hour before race time.

As the ladies assembled for the start, I found myself at the front. I thought I should probably move to the back because I knew I wasn't going to be the fastest, but things happened so quickly that I stayed put. And I actually enjoyed the view at the front. I did what I suspect most other runners were doing - sized up the competition. What a lesson in looks are deceiving! If you've ever run a race, you know what I mean. (More on this later.)

The officials counted us down from 10, and we were to start running at the sound of cowbells! Weird, I know! As we started running I felt strong and happy to be doing this race. Right away I saw Tim and Emma and Nate. I waved and gave high fives as I passed, so glad they had come to cheer me on. The first 2 mile run was wonderful. I spent the whole time praising God for a beautiful morning and an amazing opportunity to be in my first duathlon. It went by very quickly. Just before I reached the transition area, I heard the cheers of my wildest fans (my family).

As I entered the first transition, I checked my watch and was happy to see I was right on target with a 10 minute/mile. I quickly put on my helmet, gloves and camel back and went to take off on my bike. When I pushed my bike forward, the whole bike rack came with it. I pushed it off and kept going...only a 2 minute transition time.

The bike portion consisted of 2 loops of a 6 mile loop. Initially there was lots of downhill, but then the hills came with ever-increasing steepness. I found that I would be passed by road bikes on the downhill, but I would overtake them again on the hills. (Tim later explained this was due to the difference of gears in my mountain bike and a road bike.) I felt great cranking up the hills and was glad to have the smaller tires I had recently put on my bike. (I was also grateful that I had trained on my neighborhood hills for this race, the entire course was very hilly.)

For the most part I biked alone. There were occasional packs of riders, but I seemed to be at my own pace. I encouraged other riders as we would pass, and they encouraged me. It was a neat camaraderie. It was during this portion of the race that I thought about how deceiving looks can be. I had passed a lady who I had guessed would be much faster than I, but her friend (who was in her 60s) smoked me! I was reminded of this every time we passed on the trails. She was a good half loop ahead of me, wearing her grandma outfit and riding her cruiser bike (I'm not even sure it had gears). She had a smile on her face the whole time, and I was happy for her energy and ability to race.

Although the entire race was inside the park, there were cars on the main rode where we biked. Thoughts of riders being hit by a car kept entering my mind until I finally told myself to stop. I focused on enjoying the beautiful day once again. I also thought about how I would word my blog post about the race. Why I signed up for a 5K next weekend? And how I really didn't like the sound of being 37. I passed my cheering section four times on the bike portion of the race.

As I entered the transition area again, I was painfully aware that I had a rock in my shoe. I knew I needed to stop and get it out, but I hated the idea of taking up precious time to do so. I quickly discarded all my riding gear and sat down to remove the rock from my shoe. As I stood to run I became painfully aware of another thought: my legs felt like jell-o! They did not want to run. I felt as though I had no control over them, so I kept thinking one foot in front of the other.

As I passed my family once again, my legs began to fall into sync and I began my final 2 mile run. This time I wasn't so excited or feeling so fortunate to be doing a duathlon. I felt like I was barely moving. As I came to the top of the first hill, I was relieved to feel the cool air off the lake. A song came to mind and it became my mantra for the remainder of the race: You are my strength. It was a prayer for the Lord to carry me to the finish line.

I took some Gatoraid at the half-way point, hoping it would give me a quick energy boost. Half way there I told myself. That last mile was difficult. Other runners who had finished the race were walking up the path to encourage the rest of us. It was great to see their smiling faces and hear their encouragement. As I came to the last hill one of the spectators said, "You can hear the music." I, in fact, could. But I did not have the energy to kick it into a higher gear. I began to listen to my feet shuffle along the path and thought of how it sounded like my Grandma Bennie's feet when she would walk. At this point I even jokingly asked a lady who was cheering me on, "Am I moving?" I told her I couldn't tell as we both laughed! I rounded the corner and saw Tim and Emma and Nate standing just beyond the finish line. I kicked it into fast gear and finished with a strong stride.

I wasn't prepared for the emotions that surged through me as I finished my first duathlon. I was choked up and wanted to cry as I hugged Tim, but I also didn't want to do the ugly cry while I was sweating in public. I was handed my finishers medal, and I felt my legs shaking as we stood and hugged each other.

We stayed just long enough for me to get some food and a finisher's shirt, then we headed back to the hotel where I took a long-awaited shower (and the kids swam one last time). I felt so loved and encouraged by my family, and I thought about how much harder that race would have been without them there to cheer me on.

When we got home, I slept for 2 hours! I told Tim I didn't know if I would do that race again, but my mind was quickly changed when I went outside and watched Nate and Emma compete in a duathlon of their own making! I knew right then I would be doing it again...and one day with my daughter at my side. I can't wait!!!!

A birthday duathlon!

I decided to celebrate my birthday this year by participating in my first-ever duathlon. I had so much fun training for the race that I was super excited come race morning. The duathlon was an all-women's race at the Aurora Reservoir just east of Denver. So we went to Denver the night before and swam and hung out at the hotel.

Then we got up at 5:45 a.m. to head to the race site. Here we are - getting set up in the transition area.

And we are off! Somehow I ended up in the very front for the start of the race. It was fun to be in front - at least for a little while. We started with a 2 mile run.

Then we transitioned to a 12 mile bike ride.

Then back to a 2 mile run.

I finished! My unofficial time was 1:40, which I thought was great since I kept pace at a 10 minute/mile run and 5 minute/mile bike (there were some loooong uphill bike sections). I was so thankful I had trained on the hills around my house because the course for the entire race was very hilly! I felt very prepared, and I actually had an advantage because I had always trained with Nate in tow. I felt so much faster when I got out there on my own.

After the race we had lunch at Maggio's - the best Italian food I've ever had! It was fun to celebrate my race and my birthday with my favorite people - my husband and my kids. They gave me some great gifts and we had my favorite dessert - creme brulee. YUM!

Overall it was one of the best birthdays ever! A year ago I would not have dreamed of competing in a duathlon. I wasn't even running this time last year. But I'm very grateful for the ability to run and bike and for a family that wants to share it with me. I am so blessed!