Annapolis 10 Mile Run.

Race Report: Annapolis 10 Mile Run.

place: 1027 (out of 4409 total runners)
bib: 748
chip time: 01:23:05.40
gun time: 01:27:11.75

After being told by several people — race organizers and running buddies — that traffic was awful, that many people last year ran from their cars to the starting line, etc. I woke up at 5:00 a.m. (for a 7:45 start), ate a banana, got dressed, pinned on my number, and tied my chip onto my shoe. James and I picked up Laura at 5:30 a.m.

We had, of course, no problem getting to Annapolis and parking. We were at the Navy Marine Corps stadium (race start and finish and village) by 6:15. Oh well — better super early than late! Being late did have its perks, though. Laura and I signed up (and didn’t have to wait for!) pre race massages. It was a 10 minute “warm up” massage, getting the blood moving, lightly massaging the muscles, etc. It felt really good (and it was free. Sweet.) We hung around for a while (and I went to the bathroom, um, three times) until it was finally time for the race to start.

The race was really clogged at the start — many people (me too) were dodging people, trying to pass people. It usually takes a while in a race of this size for people to shift into their “place” during the race. The first couple of miles were like that — it was annoying. Then: up the Severn River Bridge. My goodness - what a bridge! It went up up up but then down down down, which is always good. The next few miles were flat/ rolling hills, and I felt good … exhuasted, and pushing it, but good. No stomach problems (thank you GasX pill!), and my new shoes were perfect. I kept checking my watch against the mile markers, making sure I was between an 8:00 and 9:00 pace, but as the time went on, and I started gettting woozy, the multiplication got really effing tough. It was hazy and humid, but not super hot … but it was still really nice that loots of people had sprinklers out. Then we went back up the Severn River Bridge (from the other side) again! Cruel! I missed the nine miler marker, so that was worrying me — I knew that, time wise, I should have passed it, but I never saw it. Apparently it was poorly marked. Finally the stadium came back into view. The problem with the last mile is that it’s still a mile, but I expect every turn to be the finish. Finally finally I saw the balloon arc and sprinted to the finish.

I saw Pat and James at the end (thanks, Pat, for taking a picture with your camera phone. I’m sure I look stunning). Got my water and my cold wet washcloth (nice touch, Annapolis Striders!) and exchanged my chip for my Premium … and - what a premium! It’s a navy blue half zip microfleece pullover with neon green stripes down the sleeves, with the A10M logo and FINISHER embriodered on the left chest. Very fancy! We finally met up with Laura (yay Laura!) and headed home. Well, we tried to head home — the traffic out of the parking lot was ridiculous. Anyhow, we got back to Baltimore, got breakfast at XS (Belgium waffle with fruit, yum), and enjoyed some MTV reality tv.