Uff Da Half Marathon Recap

Greetings friends! Just thought I would pop in to give you a recap of the Uff Da Half Marathon. The Uff Da Half Marathon happens yearly around this time. It is part of Syttende Mai Days in Woodville, WI. It is a small race that has both a 5K and Half Marathon. Around 80-90  people in the half marathon It is an out and back course on scenic abandoned railroad bed. Flat and Fast! (If you remember from my first post, where I talked about my 10 mile run turning into a 15 mile run, this is that same trail.)

I chose to do this race as part of my long run for the week. My training plan had 16 miles on it, so I figure add a 1 mile warm up and 2 mile cool down, BOOM- 16 miles. I was nervous going into this race because I hadn't raced a half marathon in a while, plus it was the first race of the season for me. I also wanted to see if I could get a PR for my half marathon.

My friend Jess and her co-worker picked me up around 6:30AM and we were on our way. We got there with plenty of time to spare before the race. SO we got in a mile warm up, made a port-a-potty stop, and got close parking. The weather was great! Sunny and 45 degrees at the start= perfect! I kept going back and forth over whether or not to wear a long sleeve shirt or not, but opted for short sleeves. Glad I went for the t-shirt because I got warm quickly.

The gun went of at 8 AM and we were off. I made my self go slow the first few miles until I could get in a good rhythm. It usually takes me the first few miles before I start to feel strong in my races. Even with my slower start I was still in the lead packs of runners. I worked my way into a 7:20ish pace. I started to catch runners in front of me and would pace myself with people running a similar pace. I find this helps keep me on target pace. At the turn around spot  I could see hoe far the lead female runner was ahead of me. She became my focus! I chose to focus on trying to catch her for the rest of the race. I will tell you I was close to catching her. If I had about 200 more yards I would have caught her at the finish.

My time was 1:36:36, which is a PR by 12 seconds. I was 2nd female, 1st in my age group, and 7th overall. I was happy with this race. It was definitely a confidence booster. What made the race even better  was Dan and the kids cheering at multiple spots along the trail. It was so great to see their smiling faces and hear them ringing the cowbells.
Next up: tapering for the Minneapolis Marathon!
Just wanted to leave you with something that made me giggle. I think mostly runners or anyone who has run a race will get this joke.

My first race recap!

So last Saturday I ran a 5k. It is part of a 5k series at one of the health clubs near us. You paid one entry fee and it allows you to run about all the series they have through the year. My oldest Jakob and I were both going to be running. Here's how it went down.....

We got to the gym and got our race bibs. Took a brief look at the map of the course and got my Yak Traks on and we were ready to go. There were between 40-50 people in the race (small race), but pretty good turnout considering the weather. It was in the lower teens for a temp, with some wind.

The race started and I held back a bit for the first part and then worked my way into the first place spot. It was here that I had wished I had looked a little closer at the map. It would have been a better way to gage how much distance was left. The course was a loop course on the streets, some areas were plowed and others there was some deeper snow and icy spots. Footing was definitely something to be careful with, was definitely happy to have my Yak Traks. Was cruising along and a guy ended up out kicking me in the end. I finished 2nd overall. My time was 24:17, not my fastest but considering the conditions it was pretty good.

Overall this race was very nicely organize and very low key. I felt it was a great way to get some more 5k races under my belt. Hopefully, the next one will have some better conditions.