River Run for Ryan 5K Race Report
A month or so ago, Erin and I planned a trip to Guttenberg, Iowa for this past weekend, and it just so happened that there was a 5K on Saturday! Coincidence? I think not! As soon as I found out the 5K was going to be the same weekend we were visiting, I told Erin we had to run it (along with a million other things we did that I will have to post about later!).
It was the Fourth Annual River Run for Ryan, held in honor of six-year-old Ryan Hunt of Garnavillo, Iowa. Ryan has mucopolysaccharidoses (MPS), and all of the proceeds benefited the National MPS Society and their research to find a cure. Ryan’s dad was the MC (and maybe the organizer?) of the race, and his mom and two siblings were there too (picture below). They seemed like such a great family and I was really happy to participate in a race that helps someone local out. I love the community support feeling that was there.
So, on to the race. Our plan was always to run two miles from the cabin we were staying in to the race, then possibly back. However, when we woke up Saturday morning, it was raining and thundering/lightening on and off. Erin and I were being pretty indecisive about whether or not we were going to run to the start or get a ride. But when we saw a break in the clouds, we decided to go for it.
Running to the start
It was overcast while we were running, but as we arrived the sun came out in full force and the temperature soared! We were drenched in sweat just from our slow warm-up (I should note we both ran 18 miles (and skiied and swam) the day before and were feeling a bit sluggish). We were hoping for light rain during the run, but everything was more beautiful in the full sun.
We still had to register when we got there, and the lady registering us said “Wow! You two look like serious runners!” Ha ha. I thought that was cute. I told her we ran to the race, and I think she was surprised.
Erin and I both wanted to run negative split 5Ks. I wanted to start out slow, since I am not in racing form, then speed up. The race was an out and back to a track at the Althetic Field. We ran sort of down the main street in Guttenberg, then back along a raised path along the river.
I stuck with Erin for maybe the first quarter mile of the race, then she took off. I ran my first mile in 8:33, and was worried that was too fast! But I wanted to run negative splits, so I tried to keep it up. I ran next to a woman from Minneapolis for a bit during the second mile, and we chatted about the hot summer weather’s affect on running, how beautiful Guttenberg is, and marathon running. My second mile came in at 8:39. DARN! No negative splits for me. I tried to run that last mile somewhat faster, and sped up as I ran across the river path, and felt the cool breeze on me. I passed a lot of runners, which was new for me (I was also passing a lot of walkers, because the 1-mile walk associated with the race went along the path – kind of bad planning but whatever).
I sprinted to the finish and my last mile came in at 8:14. I didn’t feel like I was going to die, but I was happy to be done! My final garmin time was 25:28.
Erin was already done when I finished. We both commented on the fact that the race was only 3 miles long! Not a true 5K! We think they may have had us turn too early. Oops. Oh well.
We hung around for awards, because you never know with a small racing field… and lo and behold, we both got second place in our age groups! Good thing my best friend is in a separate age group, right? Ha ha.
We ended up not running back to the cabin (we rode with Steven) and then the weather turned funky again and rained on and off for a lot of the day. Not too much to keep us from attending the ski show or going back to the beach, but hopefully I will be able to blog all about that later!
Themocracy
Awesome! And your time for the 5K is impressive!
Look at you two going in there and sweeping the medals! Congrats on a speedy race, especially after 18 the day before!
I had so much fun! We should make this a tradition 🙂
Me too! And I definitely concur! We should go back together at least ONCE each summer. There is still a lot out there that we haven’t explored together! There is a neat hiking path on the bluffs about 30 minutes north of Guttenberg that I think you would enjoy. And I still think it would be kind of neat to see a winery 🙂
Wow, impressive speed after an 18 miler and skiing/swimming the day before. You guys are rockstars! Congrats on your AG award! I love small races!!
Thanks! I really love small races too. 🙂 I think they are much more my style!
Woo-hoo! It’s always fun to place in your age group. Way to go!