The most recent race that I have participated in was the Fancy Farm 5K. This was not my best race, so "bad" in fact that I came up with a pre-race checklist based on all that went wrong and contributed to a not-so-hot race:
1. Plan accordingly for a Friday evening race: know temperature, elevation, where you are going before hand!
2. Do NOT drink coffee 45 min before the race (this may work for Saturday morning races, but Friday night ones not so much...you'll spend your warm-up time in line at the porta-potties...and you will have a belly ache throughout the hot, sultry run. UGH.)
3. If you plan to listen to iPod music, make sure it is charged.
4. Pay attention when the race starts so you don't trip on those trying to pass you. It sucks to fall 20 seconds into the run!
5. Double-knot your shoes so that they don't come untied 2 minutes into the race. And if they do, kindly thank EVERYONE who lets you know your shoe is untied as they pass you, they are just trying to save your life.
6. Tie your untied shoe prior to the half-way point, that way you can make up your time when you aren't so tired.
7. Don't look at the race shirt before you actually run, it may say something like, "I Survived The Hill - 2009" and you could get freaked out.
8. If you get a shirt that says "I Survived The Hill - 2009" then don't think that the only HILL you will encounter will be prior to the half-way point...THE hill just might be towards the end! And if you have a shirt that brags about surviving a hill, it probably isn't a downhill.
9. Know where the finish line is so that when you are hauling tail towards the end, you don't plow into a crowd of people because it is a short stop! (it doesn't make for finding friends)
10. After the race: Have a pitcher of margaritas with a good friend who did the race with you...especially if you DID NOT follow the above 9 items.
Despite it all, I just checked the results and found I placed 6th in my age division (31 women) with a time of 26:28. Not too terrible, but not my best time. That's okay, though, because I had a good time and we enjoyed the post-race margaritas!!
On a different note... Josh and I went to a Hummingbird Festival in LBL last weekend and got some really cool pictures. Hummingbirds are amazing little creatures, and I have to admit that I am slightly infatuated with them (for this I get mad made fun of, but that's OK!) We also got to see some other nature creatures, and I am now also in love with Owls! They are really neat and this little screech owl was soooo cute, I just had to share the picture with you!
Hummingbird Facts:
-they are the tiniest birds in the world
-a hummingbird's brain is 4.2% of its body weight, the largest proportion in the bird kingdom
-hummingbirds can hear better than and see farther than humans
-they have no sense of smell
-a hummingbird baby is about the size of a penny
-their wings will beat about 70 times per second
-they are the only birds that can fly both forward and backwards and can also hover in mid-air, fly sideways and even upside-down (!!)
-they migrate to Mexico and South America, sometimes flying all the way across the Gulf of Mexico!
-for more amazing hummingbird facts, check this site out! It's really cool!!!
Finally, I have to share something that I find hilarious: Stacey and I went shopping this weekend and found STIRRUP pants. Whaaaa??? Being a child of the 1980s it is very difficult for me to get with fashion program and wear the leggings and stirrup pants and over-sized sweaters and dresses. I know they are much more stylish now than they were then (I may even say little girls look cute in these outfits, but adults not-so-much) but I still cannot bring myself to do it. I guess this is showing my age. I already wore this once, cannot do it again. Lord help me if slouch socks and Keds come back into style! Wellll, Stacey found some stirrup pants this weekend, and we HAD to try them on. So, like teenage girls, we piled into the dressing room with our new found hideous outfits and, giggling loudly, took pics of ourselves. It is just wrong, or as Stacey says, "It's Tragic."
I leave you with our newest summertime passion:
Happy Summer!