Reggae 5K Report!

Knackered from building the shed, we got up Saturday morning and headed off to the Reggae 5K in Black Mountain, NC.

I know you're not supposed to wear or try anything different for a race than you do when you train...but sometimes its easy to do what you know isn't supposed to be the best. Andrew and I both had a 5 hour energy drink... I took it in stages to see if I'd be sick at first, but Andrew just downed it. At least our drive was energized.

This was only the 2nd time the Reggae 5K had been done so I guess they are still in the learning phase, anyhow... we got their in plenty of time, did our registration and sat around for about an hour. The race was supposed to start at 10:00 am, but because of late people showing up to register they put it off to 10:30... I know its only 30 minutes but sheesh, if you want to race turn up BEFORE its due to start!

So at 10:30 we line up at the back, mixed in with the baby strollers and other slow runners since my usual 5K runs last around 45 minutes. Off we went, packed in with the other runners, dodging the kiddies who started walking immediately after starting, and the others who were just a bit slower than us. The course was pretty good, started on a slight up hill gravel road, then a long downhill stretch on an asphault road. Going downhill we were able to pick up the pace. There was a band at one of the corners serenading the runners and cheering... the course at the bottom of the hill was a lot flatter than I expected. Andrew kept pushing me at a pace quicker than I'd normally do on my own but it was manageable with the rush of excitement.

I was very lucky, at one point my ankle just gave away completely but didn't hurt then on my recovery step from almost tripping it gave away again! How I managed to not get a sprain is beyond me. We started back up the hill we'd come down and I could really feel the quicker pace getting to me. But being able to pass all those people who had stopped to walk was a great feeling...and Andrew still pushing me and encouraging me to just make it to the top, then there was another downhill stretch. Amazingly enough we ran the entire time! I knew I could do it because I've managed before, but just not at a racing pace.

Part of the rules of the Reggae 5K was to dance across the finish line while people cheered you on. We decided to do the Monkees walk, you know...hips together, crossing one leg over the other. Very funny. We crossed the line and some volunteers gave us flowers around our necks and they took our numbers. That feeling was really great and trippy. When I'd looked at the clock we had made it in 33 minutes! 12 minutes quicker than I normally run... no official time yet, but I'll definitely up date when I get it.

After we cooled down, we tye-dyed our race shirts...it was something that Andrew hadn't done before and something I've not done in years! Plus it was a great souvenir. They were also serving FREE alcohol and food. Andrew took full advantage of the beer and I had to drag him home where he continued his Reggae party of drinking. The combination of running, beer, and energy drinks finally caught up with him and he crashed. Bless.

We had a really good time and enjoyed the whole atmosphere. We've even signed up for another 5K run on May 6th! :)