Pounding the Pavement: Race Review - The Bigglest Loser Walk/Run Series

I hate missing Sunday church but I really wanted to do this race!

Matt worked the night before and I didn't sleep worth a hoot, so between the both of us we were running on low steam. But that didn't stop us! We were up early and headed out to Crown Point, Indiana.

The event was at the fairgrounds and packet pick up was easy enough. We got our bibs and our goody bag and were ready to rock it. I don't know if I was more excited for the race or to wear my new leggings. True story.

The race didn't start for another hour so we browsed the booths and I bought some headbands that were guaranteed to "stay put". I put one on and figured it was as good as any to test it out!

Several past season Biggest Loser contestants were milling around. Dan and Jackie Evans from Season 5 were our hosts. Dan sang the National Anthem and did a couple half hour song sets. He was suprisingly pretty good!

There were over 1000 participants with the half marathon and 5K race combined. The half marathon runners were released first in 3 waves. Then 30 minutes after that, the 5K runners were released in waves. Matt and I were in the first wave. At the sound of the starting horn, I took off like a mad woman. I always tell myself to not start out like a bat out of hell but I do anyway. I was doing pretty good. My pace was good, breathing wasn't too bad and I kept on trucking. First mile was a piece of cake.

My second mile was even better, according to my running app. Halfway through the second mile, JJ O'Malley was there yelling out encouragement and cheering runners on. Very inspiring! The third mile, I felt like I hit a wall. I wanted to push but my legs just wouldn't cooperate. I was still passing runners but I felt like a turtle trudging through peanut butter. The hill towards the end was brutal as I bared down and gave the best I could.

At the finish, I pushed through. Andrea Wilamowski, from season 16, was there yelling out congrats to runners. We were then given a sweet medal, a banana, a turkey stick, water and an orange. Score!

I waited for Matt as I horked down my snacks. He came about ten minutes after me but I am proud of him, nonetheless.

We sat for an hour, enjoying the beautiful weather and looking at what we got in our bag - coupons and samples!

It was such a nice race. I prefer smaller, home town races however the larger ones have so much energy! It was such a gorgeous day for it too! I even braved my self-consciousness and wore a tank top to run in (bat-wing syndrome).

So the review of the Biggest Loser Walk/Run Series:
Terrain - pavement, some gravel and several hills, moderate traffic too
Organization - well done, race was clearly marked, volunteers directed 5K runners and marathon runners, two water stations even for 5K runners (usually don't have water stations)
Cost - $35 before deadline; got a dry wick shirt, a drawstring bag with a granola bar and samples plus coupons and ads for other 5Ks in the area
Time of Race - 8:00am/marathon; 8:30am/5K
Overall - nice race, not far from home, lots of energy and excitement, music and booths
Award - Plaques for the top 3 winners in each age category, participation medal for all runners
My Time - 29.30; fastest mile at mile 2 with a 9.02 mile; average pace 9.22m

Race on, friends.
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