No secrets here…as the title suggests, I had an awesome race this weekend! I feel like the term PR is a little fancy considering this is only my 2nd or 3rd 8k race, but I blew away my time from the 2011 Shamrock Shuffle. And considering 2011 was a fast year for me, I was quite excited! What makes this even better is that I had a totally relaxed and uncharacteristic race prep. Saturday, I took a tough spin class and then went walking around downtown at the expo before spending Saturday night at a housewarming party drinking red wine.
This picture of me eating an apple and trying to smile is hilarious! I did get to sleep before midnight and had a tasty race day breakfast (recipe coming soon), which I’m sure helped. I also have to give some props to the speed training I’ve been doing because I kept a steady pace throughout the race and felt GREAT the rest of the day! In the spirit of being honest…after walking up and down the ramps and stairs at Wrigley Field and then getting stuck in my car battling traffic out of the city, by Monday night, I was pretty sore!
Sunday morning, I dragged the BOY out of bed really early (6am) and we were on the train with Starbucks in hand by 6:40.
We spent Saturday night at my bro’s, so it was easy to ride the brown line down to the city early Sunday morning. We arrived downtime way before the race, so the BOY took me over to use a big, clean, bathroom at his law school. Can you say ‘best pre-race bathroom EVER’?!
You’ll appreciate this picture if you are a runner! If not, I’m sure you think I’m nuts! Then, we walked east towards the lake. People were just starting to filter into Grant Park, but for the most part it was quiet.
The BOY and I hung out on a bench chatting about the morning while runners warmed up, stretched, and ran circles around us. With about 15 minutes to go before corrals closed, I made my way to the bathroom one last time and made the final decision on what to wear. The weather was so unpredictable with strong winds coming off of the lake and a hint of sun emerging in the sky that I wasn’t sure if I would need a long sleeve layer.
I went without it, which was the perfect decision. I said goodbye to the BOY and found corral B towards the front of the line. The corrals were close to closing, so there was a mad rush, but I found a nice little space to stretch and jump to stay warm for the 20 minutes before I got to cross the start line.
I crossed the start line, started my watch, and found a comfy pace. I saw the mile 1 sign at 7:40 and moved along through the streets of Chicago enjoying the crowds. After mile 3, I had a flashback to my last shuffle where I crashed during my last mile and half. I had a steady pace going and felt strong, and was hoping to be able to keep it up. At mile 4, I was feeling light with the lack of expectation for this race and realized that I was just 8 minutes away from a PR!
I crossed the finish line in 37:25, almost 2 minutes faster than my last shuffle. I was shocked at my time and shocked at my energy levels as I located the BOY and the post-race party.
The negative of being in such an early corral was that we had a long wait before the second wave (with my friends) started. But we had plenty of time to enjoy the beautiful day and post run beer…again comfortably seated on a bench!
A little before noon, we decided it was time for food and walked south on Michigan Ave to Yolk. As expected, the wait was long, but totally worth it when I sunk my fork into this unbelievable veggie omelet and seasoned potatoes.
The BOY and I have been wanting to try Yolk for a while and we were not disappointed with our lunch! With finals approaching, the BOY needed to head back home, but I followed up lunch with a pedicure, some post race R&R, dinner with the family, and then a Monday Chicago Cubs game.
It was a jam packed race weekend, but I wouldn’t have it any other way!
I truly appreciate all of the support and encouragement posted across the blog this weekend. I was super excited to share my race and weekend with you guys (which is why I stayed up extra late to do so)! Since I got home so late Monday night, there is no meal planning (and probably not a lot of meal making this week), so this race really is the blogging highlight of my week. If it is any indication, the 2013 race season is going to be a fun and speedy one!!!
Finish Time
00:37:25
OVERALL
2,539 of 33,259
FEMALE
504 of 19,248
DIVISION
121 of 4,233
1M
00:07:35
07:35
2M
00:15:04
07:29
3M
00:22:45
07:41
5K
00:23:31
07:14
4M
00:30:13
07:30
FINISH
00:37:25
07:26
Avg. Pace
07:32
Luv What You Do 
Wow! Awesome times-congratulations! You are setting up for a great race season. I did appreciate the bathroom-only had porta-potties at my April Fool’s 5K-. Your pre race prep might need some tweeking for the longer runs ;).
I agree about the race prep! Now I am moving into full training mode with healthier decisions and longer runs : ) So happy that you appreciated the potty picture!
great.. Keep on running.
Thanks Toby! It was a much warmer race than wen you were here : )
Look at you go!! SO SPEEDY. Great job!
Why thank you friend!!!
Congrats on the big PR!
It sounds like such a great day!
It was a lovely weekend for sure! Hooray for race season!
Yay! Congrats!
Thanks! Hope you were able to get out for a run this weekend before all of this crazy rain and hail : (
Awesome job on the run woo!
I felt good to be out running the streets of Chicago. I can’t wait to do it again!
WOOHOO on that PR! Way to go, that is so awesome! Loved all the pictures…gah, and you have me itching to go to a baseball game now!!! I also have an infatuation with Chicago and I reallllyy want to go there so this post was perfect in so many ways 🙂 CONGRATS again!
I hope that you can visit! Let me know if you do!
The cubs are so awful you can get $6 tickets and it is a fun stadium to visit…plus there is lots to do in the city!
WOW! Big congrats on the PR! That’s incredible! But, I have to say, I’m more interested in those yummy-looking seasoned potatoes ;).
They were some of the BEST potatoes I have had and the breakfast was incredible. We have been wanting to go to Yolk for awhile and it was awesome. Breakfast food is the best…especially after a race!
Congrats. Great job, and what a busy but wonderful weekend. It sounds awesome. When I have no meals planned, I call back on cereal and toast. It happens, and it’s good.
Yes…don’t forget popcorn and wine too!
Luckily, I always keep veggie burgers and rice in the freezer since we still haven’t gone to the store!
[…] The quinoa adds a hint of nuttiness, which is PERFECT for a pre-race brekkie! And a PR! […]
Congratulations on your PR!!! Your pace is impressive! Always nice to go into race season with a little extra confidence 🙂
For sure!!!
Thanks for the comment…I was a little sore afterwards, but am feeling good!
Yay! Awesome job, speedster!
I do love the nice bathroom pic 🙂 Hee hee.
What a fun weekend!
I’m glad that you runners are diggin’ the bathroom pic : )
Now I’m ready for some sunshine to get out and do some biking!
[…] the launch of running season behind me and a Shamrock Shuffle 8k PR in my pocket, it is time to dive into some more serious training. Ok, so probably not super […]
wow. wow. wow! AWESOME PR!! AWESOME PACE!!! You rocked this!! (sorry, I must I’ve been WAY behind in my favorite blogs … yours … and am just now doing some Sunday morning catch up!) … xo
You are so sweet and I appreciate your cheer. It was a great race and I am still proud of that pace. Hoping the speed keeps on coming this season.
You are speedy! Congrats on an awesome race and a PR! A few friends shuffled this year, too… definitely adding to my 2014 calendar.
2013 is gonna be a good year for you! 🙂
Woo hoo! I hope that you do the race next year….we can meet up for a beer : ) Thanks for the support!
[…] I finally PRed a half marathon, breaking the 1:50 mark. I ran an incredibly fast (for me) 8k Shamrock Shuffle and finished out racing season with an exciting finish to the Chicago Marathon, blowing away my […]