Thanksgiving is now the most popular race day in the United States, but I had to wait until today for my local turkey trot. The town where I teach hosts an annual 5k that starts and finishes at a bar with free breakfast afterwards. It doesn't get better than that.
It was cold this morning - in the 20's - but little wind on a flat course. This was my first 5k since last August, and I'm in distinctly better shape than I was then, so I was hoping to break 20 minutes today. I ran the first mile in 5:55, and I thought I might even have a shot at a PR, but my second mile slowed to 6:15. I thought I might still break 19 minutes, but instead finished the race in 19:19. I was trying to keep pace with the first female, a girl I know from the local running store, but came up short there as well as she passed me in the final mile. I came in 25th place out of more than 600 runners, and 3rd in my age group. My dad ran the race as well and finished in 35:29, faster than his time from last year. My stepmother Debbie walked the one mile race.
After the race I got a free breakfast sandwich and donut, but passed on a drink from the bar (which was open and doing a brisk trade amongst the other runners). If I'm going to drink in the morning, I want to feel like I earned it, which means I would need a half marathon or at least a new 5k PR to start imbibing.
When I came home, a large holiday parade was going on right outside my window.
I saw the Philly Phanatic go by, as well as a hundred high school marching bands.
Not a bad morning, all in all.
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