I waited until the day of the event to pick up my packet (spiffy new shirt – woo hoo). Registration was held at Urban Active Fitness. I wanted to hop on all their weight machines but I resisted. Instead, I dropped into the Panera for a decaf coffee. A very nice lady helped me find the coffee cup lids. Warmed from the inside I mingled for a bit and then went for a little warm up walk around a square block of The Greene. Soon enough it was time to line up at the start.
I was very nervous after dropping out at the beginning of The Frostbite 5 (see my earlier blog posts). But when the crowd eventually surged forward to start the event, I leaned in and did some speed walking with a very short stride. This kept me out of last place (and prevented me from experiencing Frostbite 5 flashbacks, inducing a chickie panic attack). I was doing better than my last time out, but my legs started cramping. I did my best to just keep pushing through it. I was hoping that I would finish in 36 minutes, but I had a feeling I might go a bit slow and take 38 minutes to complete the course. I continued past friendly course marshalls who complimented my look (they must have loved my awesome boxers). As I turned the last corner and approached the finish line, I was surprised but pleased that the clock read 32:00:00, meaning I would cross it just after 33 minutes, far better a time than I thought I could hope for.
This was a big comeback. I celebrated my success by getting breakfast at Panera with a big, friendly, and curious crowd. And afterward, I did a little chicken dancing. J
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