A right colorful mess, a rant

171.7 (today)
Color Me Rad 5k, 47:45 (yesterday)


Color Me Rad was logistically the worst race I have ever seen, but I had a great time.

The bad:
Traffic was a nightmare, with the location and number of gates insufficient.  Adding to that was the fact the waves for the race were just 5 minutes apart, so basically everyone was arriving at the same time. We got to the exit an hour before my scheduled 9:00 start time, and didn't get from the highway to a parking spot until 8:50. 

Turned out that their wave times were just words as the starting area was such a disorganized sea of people that they let those at the front shuffle onto the course, then arbitrarily said that was enough and made the crowd wait 5 minutes, then sent some more, rinse and repeat.  I didn't get to start until 9:25. All that standing shoulder to shoulder in the sunshine was a bit exhausting, as it didn't allow much range of motion, I started stiffening back up. I had already decided this was just for fun and chosen to be zen about everything, or I would have been miserable.

The "course" wove through the State Fairgrounds.  If you have ever been to the OK Fair you will know that the roads are, um, often lacking in repair.  I had to watch my step as much as I would on a trail run, but without any scenery.  The course was a mass of people the whole time, most of them walking.  Now I walked a lot too, but when I tried to run I felt like I spent all my energy trying to weave in between the crowd.  The course's path was marked, but distance was not which can add to the mental challenge, especially for the less experienced runners.   As an added bonus, around mile 2, you get to run past the livestock barn in all its fragrant and scenic glory.

The water stop was, well, unimpressive.   Refreshment was small, overly warm, bottle water.  I shudder remembering how many plastic bottle lined the last half of the race.

The color was OK, but there was such a mass trying to be colored at once that you had to choose if you wanted to run through, or patiently shuffle through the lines at each of the color stations along the course.  The finish line was similarly congested as all the people shuffled through to get their warm water and have their pictures taken.    The cloud of color was so thick it was choking (kind of ironic for a CF fundraiser), making it hard for some people to breathe and making my eyes burn.

The good:
Color Me Rad did have a few things going for it. 

For one they had great swag, with each running receiving a nice fitted shirt and fun 80s sunglasses (mine are hot pink!). 

That mass of people that choked the course?  Well hey, if nothing else, this "race" got all of those people out in the sunshine for some exercise.

It was for charity, benefiting the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

And I did have fun, albeit mostly by sheer determination to do so.  I skipped across the starting line with a coworker and her friend.  The ridiculousness of myself and those around me inspired some really lame jokes (the best kind!).  I needed to run yesterday anyways, it was nice to get to do it with other grinning idiots.

And as an added bonus, my arms look like a rainbow trout, one kid has purple arms and scalp, while my other kid's blond hair is stained green!

The tee from Dirty 30 seemed

like an appropriate choice

to run in

Running in place and exercise brain

175.3
30:00, 2.1 miles treadmill
24:00, 3 sets leg machines

I had planned on joining a fun, outside group run tonight, had been looking forward to it all week. Then I got to work and looked at my department's schedule and realized that I had scheduled myself for a split shift. So change of plans.

I knew that work was going to wipe me out today, and frankly I am a little tired of 9-10pm workouts, so my only viable option was to exercise this afternoon on my break between shifts. I also had to drive up to the city to pick up my race packet, and because the line was out the door everything took longer. I really wanted a nap when I got back to the house, but I changed into my workout clothes, packed my work clothes in my gym bag and went anyways. (Hooray for small victories over nappiness!)

Because I was stressed and I don't want to run on wiped out legs Saturday, I tried to maintain a reasonable pace on the treadmill. I generally hate treadmills and feel that they steal a little peace of your soul, but on a hot July afternoon, it was the lesser of two tortures.

I did the leg machines after I ran, and for having just run it wasn't too bad. Normally I just do 2 sets, but today I decided to do 3! Gasp! I can tell that I am getting stronger now and these work outs are getting a little easier, even though I was working with glutes that were still sore from 2 days ago. Depending on how my next work out goes, it may be time to up the weights a little.

Took a quick shower at the gym and then headed straight to work, munching on a Cliff bar as I drove.  I ended up with a small case of exercise brain and caught myself making a mistake at work, so I walked away, drank a little water and ate a little snack.  All better!


Here is what I am doing this weekend! Being a grown up can be a drag, so it's time to celebrate playtime!