First race report here, unfortunately without pictures since we left the camera at home.

As some of you know, I'm coming back to running after 8 months on the injured list.  (I developed a pelvic sfx seven months after I started running, while training for a HM.)  I started running again in November and have been building my miles with the intent of running a HM next September.  I've only run one other race since I started running again, and that was a hilly 5 miler.  I didn't intend to do any other races, because my base isn't that good yet (about 25mpw) and I haven't worked on speed at all.  However, the events at Boston made me want to get out and run something, so I signed up for a 15K on the Cumberland Valley Rail Trail.  It is part of a day long event with a 5k run, a 15k walk/ramble, a 30 km bike ride and the 15k race.  I considered the 5k, but since I know I'm slower than I was before my sfx, I decided to go for a new distance which would be an automatic PR.

It was a beautiful day, sunny and cool (about 54 deg. at the end), though a bit windy.  The race was about 30 minutes from home, but we ended up being later than expected since we missed the exit off the freeway and had to drive an extra 20 miles to get back.  By the time we got to the park in Shippensburg, all of the other events had finished.  The awards ceremony for the 5k and bike ride was going on, lunch was being served and there was a live band playing while I registered and waited for the bus to the start of the race.  It's a linear race, covering most of the currently developed part of the rail trail.  There were three buses to take us to the trailhead, but I missed the first two.  Most people waited for the last one, of course, and it was late arriving.  The drive through the country took about 20 minutes, so we arrived at 12:55, for a 1:00 race.  Everyone ran for the bathroom, then to drop off our jackets, etc. to be transported to the finish line, then we had about 1/3 mile walk/jog to the starting line.  Crazy!  They ended up holding up the start until everybody assembled, so we began 6 or 7 minutes late.  At least there was no time to get nervous, and not a lot of time to get cold, though I was shivering before I reached the starting line.

There were 140 runners for the 15k.  I lined up near the back, as I figured I'd be one of the slower runners.  Since I started running again, I've only run once longer than 8.5 miles, so doing 9.3 was a bit of a stretch.  I hoped that the fact that the course was mostly flat would make up for the fact that it was longer than my usual runs.  It did.  One of the reasons I wanted to run the 15k was to work on my long run pacing.  Where I live is pretty hilly, and to a large extent the hills determine my pace.  (I puff and pant on the uphills, fly on the downhills, and love the flats when I reach them.)  Since the race was flat, I was able to work on keeping an even effort.  I had originally planned to just do the race as an easy long run, but once there, I found a moderately hard gear and tried to keep that.  I don't have a Garmin, but according to my watch, I was running between 9-10 minute miles the whole way.  I did slow down the last three miles, and some of the people whom I had passed passed me.  My stomach was acting up, I think in reaction to the icy cold water at the water stations, and by mile 7 it was cramping every few minutes.  That only lasted a couple of miles, but it made me wonder if I was going to have to walk.   I had intended to speed up at mile 6 or 7, but found I didn't have a faster gear, at least not until I passed mile 9.  The last .3 I raced, partly to keep ahead of the person I could hear who was right on my heels.

I ended up finishing in 1:27:37, for an average pace of 9:25.  Amazingly, I won 2nd place in my AG and got an award, a metal sculpture of a runner.  I was completely spent, especially after my final kick, but felt really good.

The course is a pretty one, a gravel/dirt rail trail through rural Pennsylvania.  The trees on both sides are just starting to leaf out, and I saw some blue hyacinths in the lush grass.  We passed several large farms and got stared at by a lot of cows and a couple of Amish and Mennonite families having picnics in their yards.  There were some gentle hills, mostly at road crossings, but nothing that slowed us down at all.

The folks who put on the race gave us a good lunch afterwards, though I wasn't really hungry yet.  My husband helped me finish the barbequed chicken, macaroni salad, and applesauce.  We stopped for ice cream on the way home to top it off.

Awesome comeback Ginny! Congrats!

The sculpture sounds very cool.

Wow, what a crazy way to start a race.  It's hard to be rushed like that.  I'm glad you're working your way back from injury and that things are going well for you.  Awesome job staying strong throughout the race, and congratulations on the AG award.  What a great surprise!  Sounds like a fun event and I'm sure your husband appreciated the runner food too ha.

Great job Ginny!  Instant PR and an AG award to boot! 

Yeah, Ginny!! Way to bring it!!!

Great job and congrats on the AG award!

A picture of the awards is here: http://cvrtc.org/race.html

Great job, congrats.