I Ran a 5K!

Ever since Kelli ran in Des Moines last year, I've felt inspired to run more. I challenge anyone to go hang around a marathon on race day and not feel inspired to be a part of it. The people are so genuinely encouraging and happy for one another. It's awesome.

I made it a goal to run a half-marathon this year at some point. I practice in spurts. I do well for a month, then get lazy. February and March were great! April, not so much. I picked it back up a little in May but by the end of the month, had gotten busy with other things. Maybe it was just eagerness to get out on a golf course once school ended.

Our friends from Down Under, Dave and Kara, were planning a visit in June. Kara runs all the time. She has run multiple full marathons (26.2 miles!) and she wanted Kelli to run the Sturgis Falls Half Marathon with her. Kelli didn't feel up to it but offered me instead. Having never run an official race before, I thought the 5K sounded better. Start small.

Dave and Kara stayed with us Saturday to help celebrate Kelli's 29th birthday. Kara helped Kelli prepare for a get together with friends during the day while Dave made a new friend in Charly. We had a lot of fun Saturday night, celebrating Kelli's birthday with friends, but didn't settle down until well after midnight. We were up bright and early yesterday morning (5:40 am) and out the door (6:30) for our 7:00 runs.

My hope was to finish in under 30 minutes. A 5K translates to 3.2 miles. Thankfully, I accomplished this small goal. Kelli snapped a photo of me crossing the finish line around 27:27 (above), but we have to wait and see what the official results say.

Kara was awesome. At this point in time I can't imagine staying focused long enough to complete a half-marathon, let alone run one while on vacation! If we ever find a way to swing a trip to Australia, I don't foresee a race as part of the itinerary!

It was great to take part in a run like this and even more awesome to do it with friends we never get to see anymore.

My support team (Charly refused to take a picture with me)

My running mate (sort of, she ran a lot farther than I did)

My photographer (and hired muscle)