Crazylegs RR

Just a quick update on my latest race - Crazylegs Classic 8k.

This is an awesome early season race that EVERYONE does.  I'm not sure how many runners there are, but its enough to warrant waves reaching ZZ.  Its well north of 10,000 runners.  The run course starts at the capitol building, winds through the UW-Madison campus and ends inside of Camp Randall Stadium, which is where the Badgers football team plays.  The venue is 2nd to none!

I was sort of targeting this race as my first speed test of the season.  Last yr I had a solid run and saw some progression compared to 2011.  This year I was expecting more of the same.  

Pre-race I met up with 2 friends who live near the finish to chat for a bit, get warmed up and figure out post race plans.  I was really excited to see how they did because it was a first running race for both of them!  They caught a ride to the start and did a very casual walk/jog for the 2 mile route to the start.

When I got to the start I met some more friends who were all in the same wave as me.  We did a bit more warm up and just hung out until the start.  The start of this race is great.  The UW band is playing and the energy is electric.  Maybe this is why the first mile is always so fast?  The first mile was somewhere around 5:40.  Miles 2-3 are always a tad slower because of some hills so this was my plan.  When it came time to dig my legs just didn't have another gear.  Which is fine.  I was coming off of some solid training so this was not a surprise.  I managed to better my time by about 1:20, but was still about 0:30-1:00 short of what I was hoping to do.  Official time was 29:33.  So, it was my first time cracking the 30' barrier for an 8k, and put me at 59th overall (22nd AG).  Not bad for a running race that is absolutely stacked with really quick runners.  Side note: the Powerbar natural fruit blends are delish.  Perfect for a pre race energy boost.  I will absolutely be using these all season long.

Mile 3.8ish.  **Almost** got a good W off.  Poor timing :P

I was really happy with my K-Swiss Ruuz.  Those shoes are light and comfy.  KS also make some great running shorts.  I also opted to wear a Wattie trucker hat on backwards.  Its not the typical race visor, which I love.  Look for more of this at upcoming races.  This is after all about having fun, right?  Notice in the pic how everyone else is not having fun ; )  But seriously, I need to get better at really making myself hurt.  Its cool that I can keep PR'ing and all, but I know I'm not running to my full potential...yet.  Only a few more weeks until the real racing begins!!!  Lots of hard work to put in between now and then.  Peace!