Beacon on the Bay 25 K...Oklahoma City, OK Weather....17F about 6 a.m. Somewhere in the low 20s at racetime. wind...calm Fashion Report: Running Gear My DW and I traveled to OKC the day before the race. My Asiscs 2120 were wearing thin so we went to The Runner and I bought the 2130. I wasn't going to wear these new shoes in the race, but needed to pick them up and get them broke in for OKC Memorial Marathon in April. The race is sponsored by Panera Bread and put on by the Oklahoma City Running Club. Went to Panera Bread to register for the race and pick up packet. As I was walking in to Panera a young mother and her daughter was entering the restaurant. The little girl, about 2-3 years old was eating a hamburger. The little girl fell, dropped her burger and started crying. The mother calmly picked up the girl and the burger. In a calm voice and spanish language the mother was comforting the child while brushing off the burger. I don't speak spanish, but Im sure the conversation went something like this. "It's ok, honey. Here, I'll brush off and make it all clean again." The mother wrapped up the burger and gave it back to the little girl and life goes on! I thought it was kind of funny....I would have done the same thing, but only if no one was watching!! Got up about 6:00 a.m on race day. Race time was 9:00 a.m. It was very cold outside but with no wind it felt kind of comfortable. Got to the race, picked up timing chip, Panera bagels and coffee. At the starting line I found wa5yom and we introduced ourselves and talked about how we planned to run the race etc. Tim introduced me to his friend Jackie. I was going to running a much slower pace than these two, so I wished them luck and went back towards the back of the pack. Race was off. That's me in the black. At the first left turn about 1/4 mile into the race, I passed a blind runner and his guide. The guide was explaining the terrain and obstacles they were encountering. What an inspiration. I ran alone within the group of runners till about 3 miles into the race. I commented on the beauty of the lake and what a nice morning it was etc. to a runner I had come up on. I normally like to say hi then go on my way without much conversation, but this guy wanted to visit. So visit we did. We naturally fell into the same pace, not too fast or slow for either of us. The course was an out and back and as we were approaching the turn around, my running partner started loosing me up a long hill. At the turn around, I stopped for a porta-break, then resumed. I had planned to run comfortable until mile 9 or 15K mark, then if I had anything left, I would try to pick up the pace. I felt really good at 15K and started picking it up. As I began increasing my pace, I started feeling really strong. Then started picking off runners one at time. I really kilt (no reference to J3 running attire) the last 10K and finished up with what must have been a nice negative split. The course was marked in kilometers and I was geared to track miles, so I gave up trying to keep track. Here's the stats: Overall Place: 103/154 Gender Place: 77/107 (Men) Div/Tot: 15/20 (M45-49) Guntime: 2:28:52 Chptime: 2:28:36 Avg pace 9:36 I won't give away Tim's results, but he did very good. Here's a pick of him receiving his award...a nice pair of socks! Here are a couple of running buddies from my hometown. The girl in white won 2nd in her 25K AG 2:18:change The girl in black won 1st in her AG in the 5K. Had a fun time...thanks for reading.

Fashion Report: Running Gear

Duh! This would normally be unacceptable, but you made up for it by posting photos to show us the said running gear. However, all black is kind of boring, don't you think? Great race and great report. Thanks for sharing! And the photos are great.

Well done on a long course. I asked in the daily if this is part of a series of races to build up for a spring marathon?

Twocat, thanks and I responded to that over at the daily, but yes, it's prep for a late April marathon in OKC>

Very impressive strong finish, you ran a smart race! I loved the report and the pictures really made a nice touch. The course looks beautiful, right on the lake, and the day looked glorious, having no wind makes a huge difference. Great that you could hook up with a fellow Boomer too. The hamburger story was funny, but honestly as I was reading it, I thought for sure the mom was gonna toss it and you were gonna ask her if you could have it... The three second rule.

Any race that starts with a trip to Panera Bread is okay in my book! Loved the story about the hamburger! I too thought for sure you were going to eat it! We'll cut you some slack on that miserable fashionreport only because you posted pictures. Sounds like a great run for you. The lake area looks beautiful. Nice report!

thanks for to all for the kind words. stumpy...thanks it was fun! wildthing....if I get that April marathon done, I'll try and liven things up a bit btb and seemom....Are you kidding me?....I would not have eaten that burger.... It had onions. CNY....yeh, that's it....Manhattan art scene...that's the look I was going for. seemom.... I love the Panera....the soup and the sandwiches Miserable fashion report? I resemble that remark. Tim...The plesure was ours. The calf felt good the entire race, but started talking to me late last night. I iced and massaged and it's much better today. The other calf started tightening up during the second half of the race, but I willed it back to perfection. It feels good today. How's the shin? Looking forward to your take on the race. Yes, we have no bananas!

That was a well planned and executed race. I like the way you had plenty in the tank for the last 10K I learn a lot from reports like this. Enjoyed the pics aswell. Well Done Roy

Yes Black is very sliming! I love a RR with photos. Glad you had someone there to document your fine race. Looked like a nice day for a run. Smart way to run a race. When is your Marathon? It is not your first, is it?