Park to Park 10 Miler Race Report and Yet Another Tri Item Purchased.

The Park to Park 10 miler is a running race that takes its participants through four Denver parks and many residential streets. I had heard about this race last year and it sparked my interest. Since I am training for the Denver Rock and Roll Half Marathon and have a difficult time getting myself to do the long runs I thought the Park to Park would be a great way to accomplish that task at least for this week. I e-mailed Julie to see if she might want to join me and fortunately for me she said yes!


The course starts and finishes in different places so Julie and I decided we would meet at the finish line, drop off a car and ride to the start together. Once we finished the race our plan was to drive back to the start to get the other car. The plan worked great. It was a fantastic morning for running. It was cool outside, the sun was shining and there was a lot of shade on the course. I didn't have any real goal that I was shooting for except to finish before the cut off time. Julie and I started out together and then separated for a bit. We eventually met up again where I started following a run/walk plan that Julie was doing. I have a hard time motivating myself to run after I start walking but Julie kept me on my toes. I don't know if she knows this but she really pushed me for awhile. It was painful but good for me. While we separated a few more times, we ran the last half mile together and crossed the finish line at the same time. A time that was under the cut off!  It is so much nicer having someone to share these experiences with. We had a good time! The only goof up was that I erased all my data off of my watch before I could look at it. :(

Besides the run/walk that I did with Julie, there were two other things that I did for the first time during this race. First, I ran without any music. I had my MP3 player with me but had only planned to use it if I was running on my own. While there were times during the races that I could have used it, I decided to run without it. I found that I really didn't miss it to much. I doubt this would be the case if I was just out for a long training run on my own. The only down side to not having music was having to listen to a girl's heart rate monitor beep at her every minute as she tried to increase her pace. I swear this happened through the whole run. She would kick up the pace and pass us but quickly started walking once the HRM started beeping at her. We would then pass her only to have her run ahead again for a few feet before the dreaded beeping stopped her in her tracks. Ugh.. The second first for me was using my new Nathan four bottle fuel belt. It was great! I own the two bottle belt that I have used for a couple of years but actually like the four bottle one better. I also never had to stop at an aid station as I had enough fluids with me.

In other news, I have purchased a new saddle for my bike. For those who know me, this should not come as a surprise. I have had a horrible time trying to find saddles that work for me. It took me a year to find a good saddle for my road bike and I have already tried two saddles for my tri bike but neither of them are really working for me. So, instead of the traditional saddle, I have decided to venture out and try something very different. Here is a picture of my new saddle.

I have read some really good things about the Adamo Saddles and it just looks like it will be a better fit for me. At least I hope it is.

I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend.