3 races, 3 PR's in 2012!

2012 is starting off very well for me. I started it with a new focus on my training and I believe I am seeing the fruits of my labor, which helps me want to train even more. This has been evident in my race times so far this year, I have had 3 running races and I have set 3 PR's, and I can't think of a better way to start off the year.

Sunday I ran the last race of the Winter Cross Country Series here in Memphis. It was a 10K trail run around Shelby Farms. I did this race last year and I remember it being a tough run and a confusing run if you looked at the map! Take a look at this map.

Last year I ran this course in 56:58, but I remember having to walk a lot of it, so I was hopeful for a significant improvement over last year. I had my Garmin, my visor, my sunshades, my iPod and my new Target Tri jersey and I was ready to run. Before I knew it, they lined us up and we were ready to go. I actually prefer getting there and not standing around waiting for the race to start, but I rarely time it right.

So you can see where we start, but what you can't see is elevations on this map. I would say there were some rollers that were just hard enough to let you know you were going uphill, and then there were some downhills that I could feel me picking up speed.  The toughest part of the run was right there where it says amphitheater on the map. That little section caused a lot of walkers, but I knew if I made it through that part, then I could recover soon, so I really had to focus on the mental aspect of it and run through everything.

I know I mentioned I used my iPod on this race and I had some new headphones that were awesome! I used these headphones and loved them. They are called YurBuds. They also have an Ironman stamp on them, and I usually try to stay away from anything stamped Ironman until I complete an Ironman, but these things are so great! They are marketed for four reasons, 1. they fit securely in your ear and are guaranteed not to fall out. 2. They provide exceptional sound, which I agree with that statement. 3. Enhanced performance-I prefer to think all my hard work enhanced my performance. 4. Ultra soft comfort, I did actually forget I was wearing them. I would highly recommend these earphones.
And while on the subject of earphones, I put a song on my iPod the night before that turned out to be the most awesomest running song ever (for me at least) It is called Leaning on the Everlasting Arms by the David Crowder Band, check it out on the link. It had the perfect beat for me to run by and I could also kind of zone out and run to the beat which took my mind off my tiredness (sp?). I probably listened to that song 5 times during my race.

I finished my 6.2 mile trail run in 52:26, a new PR and almost beat last year's time by 5 minutes. I really thought I would be in the 54 minute range, so I was very happy and surprised to finish where I did. That time earned me the 13th spot out of 30 in my Age Groups and 107th out of 428 people Overall. Next up is a 5k on March 3.


Here I am rocking the new Target Tri Jersey!!