Roar

United Race for the Zoo 10K
Distance: 6.28 miles (according to my Garmin)
Official time: 1:13:34
Pace: 11:45 minutes/mile

After only sleeping 3 hours the night before I woke up at 5:45, got ready, and went to pick up S. We drove to Adj’s and the three of us plus Adj’s boyfriend Ryan drove down to Lincoln Park Zoo for the race. The 5K started to 8 and we watched the runners pass before toeing the line at 8:20 for the 10K. The weather was beautiful. Warm but not humid, sunny and clear. The first three-quarters of a mile were through the zoo. We ran past the polar bears, warthogs, bears, and lots of birds. Even though our pace for the first mile was just under 11 minutes/mile we were almost the back of the pack. My guess is that the slower runners ran in the 5k?

The race headed out of the zoo and onto my beloved lakefront running path. Online the course map said we would head north until just past the totem pole. Well the online course map was wrong. We ran almost as far north as Montrose and then circled a park to head back South to the zoo. Adj and Ryan zoomed ahead of us from the start but around mile 4, the pace S and I were keeping started to get to me and I needed to slow down. Even though she could have run ahead, S is such a good friend and slowed down so she could stay with me. The last mile included 2 bridges that I walked up, but ran down. Even with walking my pace stayed under 12 minutes/mile and I finished my first 10K. Since it was my first it is officially my PR.

After the race, the four of us walked around the zoo. I have not been to the zoo for many years, but the zoo kinda sucks… Many of the exhibits were missing animals, they don’t have elephants (not sure you can be called a zoo without elephants) and I had to basically climb the fence into the giraffe cage to see the reflection of the giraffe in a window. Ryan tried his giraffe mating call to lure it towards us, unfortunately it didn’t work.

All in all this was an excellent Sunday with racing and friends.