Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Esprit de She 10K race recap

I have blog topics coming out of my ears right now. I have a lot to share about my Green Bay visit this past weekend. On top of that, I got to meet Rita Jeptoo at a Nike Running event last night!

First things first. Let's talk about the Esprit de She 10K that I ran last Thursday night. This was my second year running this race (check out my recap of last year's race here). Both years, I've been an ambassador for this race, as well.


Last year's race was the first time I've ever run an all-female race. I was pleasantly surprised at the positive vibe that surrounded all the festivities, and was looking forward to experiencing that energy again this year. Mother Nature obliged with absolutely gorgeous weather on Thursday night - clear and sunny, with temps in the low 70s.

After work on Thursday, I met up with Katie near our respective offices. She had parked downtown and had graciously offered to let me ride up to the race with her. She just started a new job a few weeks ago, so I had a great time catching up with her on that and everything else.

Unfortunately, Katie and I hit some terrible traffic enroute and we had to take a detour. Both of us were doing race-day packet pickup, and it was starting to look like we wouldn't arrive in time. Thankfully, Marcia and Erica were already on site and willing to stand in line for us. Hooray for the magic of iPhone technology, which I used to text Marcia pictures of both of our driver's licenses. Whew!

We arrived on site. This was the scene:

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Time was short and things felt a bit chaotic trying to go through gear check, etc. But we still managed to meet up with everyone and get a great pre-race photo. I finally got to meet Meghan in person, too!

From L to R: Katie, Erica, me, Marcia, and Meghan

Marcia, Meghan, and Katie were all running the 5K, and Erica and I were running the 10K. The 5K started at 7:00 PM and the 10K kicked off at 7:10 PM. After this picture, all of the 5K runners went immediately to go line up.

Erica and I made a portapotty stop, then chatted while waiting off to the side to watch the 5K start. (By the way, Erica ran 33 miles the previous Saturday! Holy cow!)

Here's a picture of the ladies lining up:

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After the 5K runners cleared, the 10K runners got set. They made some announcements about some rough patches along the course due to the recent thunderstorms in the area. This was helpful to know.

There appeared to be nearly twice as many 5K runners as 10K runners. Many women were dancing along to the music being played at the starting line. It made me smile. I was prepared to give the race a strong effort with the hopes of attempting a PR.

I heard later that the 5K course was fairly crowded, but fortunately crowding was not an issue for me at the 10K start. I started out right on pace and felt good for about the first two miles.

Runners along the course
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As I was cruising along, I was thinking about how the 10K was one of my favorite distances. This was going to be fun! But then, a few minutes into the third mile, I started thinking that it was going to be tough to maintain this pace for another 3+ miles. Let's just keep this momentum going as long as possible. There were several water stops set up along the course, but I only stopped once for fear of losing my rhythm.

Here's another picture from the course along the lakefront:

I stole this picture from Katie's race recap.
By the way - Katie had quite the eventful evening that night. Go check out her recap for all the details!

The lakefront path in that area, while affording beautiful views of the beaches, also brought with them some rough areas as warned. There were some muddy areas, some standing pools of water, potholed asphalt, and patches of sand. I was very focused on maintaining my footing. As a result, I didn't pay nearly as much attention to the scenery as I would have liked.

On that note, I had studied the course in advance and had been a little nervous about it. It was basically an out and back for the 5K runners, but the 10K runners looped through part of the course twice. Here's the course map:


As expected, the second loop was mentally difficult. My splits started dipping.

I was thinking that I wanted to take back everything I had ever said or thought about the 10K being a favorite race distance. In the final 1.2 miles, I started getting passed by other runners. It was frustrating. I kept looking down at my Garmin and trying to calculate approximately how many minutes I had left.

The finish line came up suddenly on me. I glanced down at my Garmin in the final stretch and was shocked that based on elapsed time, I could still achieve a PR. Seriously? My Garmin was measuring the course a little short, but OK! Away we go!

My official finishing time was 55:43. My previous 10K PR was a 55:46, which I set in May 2001. (You read that correctly - my 10K PR was set over 13 years ago). This means I set a 3-second PR.


I know that three seconds is not much at all. But, I ran that course in its entirety (and I set my previous PR years and years before I ran with a Garmin). So I will take the new PR!

Honestly, I am happier about having a 10K PR from this decade than I am about the PR itself. This isn't just because it was only a 3-second PR. It's more because knocking out a 13-year old PR makes me feel like my running progress has finally come full circle from my much (MUCH) younger days.


After crossing the finish line, I went to check out the post-race night market. There were booths serving wine, sangria, and hummus/veggies. Other booths were giving away yogurt cups and energy bar samples. There was also a photo area as well as booths offering massages, manicures, and hair braiding. So festive!

Here are a few pictures from the night market which were posted on the Esprit de She Facebook page:




What a fun event amidst an absolutely gorgeous evening along Chicago's lakefront! It was awesome seeing the groups of gal pals, sisters, and mother/daughters bonding at the festivities together. I am excited to see what the race organizers have up their sleeves for next year's event in Chicago. I definitely hope to check out some of Esprit de She's future events in other cities, too!

31 comments:

  1. Yay Emily! Congrats! I agree that Mother Nature did cooperate that night.

    Oh, and the after party looks amazing!

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    1. Thank you so much, Zenaida! I've been really loving this cool summer we've been having. It's fantastic for runners. =)

      See you at ZOOMA this Saturday! When are you picking up your packet, btw? I'm planning on going Friday mid or late afternoon. Let me know!

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    2. I am picking it up on Friday evening. I have to be a the hotel for the Mocktail Party anyway so I figured I can get it there.

      You're a good pacer so hopefully I can run with you.

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    3. Zenaida! I actually picked up my packet tonight (Thursday) since I happened to be near Universal Sole. Love the swag - super cute shirt, hat, and socks. And it would be great to run with you on Saturday! Hopefully the weather holds up!!!

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    4. Glad you like the swag. I heard good things about it. Yes for tomorrow. For sure I will be able to keep the pace this time. :-)

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  2. Looks like a fun race. Congrats on the PR. It is very nice to update an old PR. A few of mine are starting to get a tad old. I'm hoping to update a couple of them soon! :)

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    1. Thanks so much, Pete! BTW, did you read Katie's recap about how she got registered as a male for this (all-female) race? Too funny.

      YES! I was talking with some friends the other day about how long PRs are good for. I would just like to update my 5K PR, which is also about 13 years old, and then I'll be good for awhile. =) Which PRs are you hoping to update soon?

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    2. I need to read Katie's recap. That's too funny! Anyway, my marathon PR should be the easiest for me to best at this point. According to my 10k and ½ PR times I should be able to run a faster marathon than my current PR. I think it is a pacing issue. If I can just pace a little better, a PR will be mine. I should also be able to best my 15k time in November if I'm able to run the Hot Chocolate!

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    3. You are a case study in accurate race prediction times! You are going to NAIL a new marathon PR, as well as a new 15K! By the way, it is too bad that there are so few 15K races out there, because it is such a great distance!

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  3. WooHoo! Congrats on the PR! How awesome is that? especially on that convoluted course!

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    1. Thanks so much, Marcia! It was so great seeing you on Thursday night! Sorry that we all got stuck in horrible traffic enroute. =( But Katie and I can't thank you enough for all of your help with packet pickup!!!

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  4. Happy beating-your-20-something PR! I'm jealous!

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    1. Thanks so much, Natalie! No jealousy, please, as there was a reason why I've got PRs out there from more than a decade ago, LOL. I only wish I could have gotten my photo published in a magazine, like you and your sister! =)

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    1. Thanks so much, Katie! It was awesome getting to see you and catch up last Thursday. Thanks again for driving, especially amidst that god-awful traffic. Have a great time at the wedding this weekend - can't wait to hear more details when you get back!!!

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  6. Congrats on the PR! I ran last year and it was such fun - I was super excited for this year until I realized about 2 weeks ago that I never actually signed up!!! Haha. Sad I missed it. :(

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    1. Thanks so much, Nina! Bummer that I didn't get to see you at this race last year. Remember how we were having steambath heat and humidity that day? Yikes! I am sad that you missed it this year, too, especially since the weather was PERFECT that night. Next year, though, for sure. =) You're signed up for ZOOMA this Saturday, though, yes? See you there!!!!

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    2. Yes - I will make sure to actually sign up for next year!

      I am registered for ZOOMA! Thanks for posting about the Groupon...I got 2 others from my run group to sign up too. See you there!!

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    3. Yay! I am glad that you were all able to take advantage of that Groupon! It was such an awesome deal. Fingers crossed that the weather forecast holds up for us this Saturday!!!!!

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  7. Congrats on your PR! Look at you, beating these older PRs this year! What is next?! ;)

    Funny you said that the 10K is one of your fave distances then decided later that it's not - it's still too "race" pace for me! Get me to 10M or HM where I can run comfortably. LOL!

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    1. Thanks so much, Kim! Yes, it's a huge relief to finally knock out some of these PRs from the early 2000's. I am hoping to be able to update my 5K PR soon, which is the last one still standing from way back when!

      I completely agree with you now on the 10K being too "race" pace. I was thinking for awhile that 10 miles can sometimes feel long (at least that is how it feels in training), and that 10K would be a nice step down. But in reality, it is still an uncomfortably fast pace! Dare I say that I might even like the 5K more than the 10K now? At least with the 5K, you go all out for a little while, and then you're done before you know it. With the 10K, you pretty much go all out, and you've got plenty of time to think about it (which can be a bad thing)! LOL

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  8. This looks like such a great race! First and foremost, congratulations on the awesome PR :) It's always such a great feeling, you deserve it! I totally understand the downside of running the same loop on repeat. I often need the mental feeling that comes with reaching a turnaround point, but looped races like this can make it difficult. Nice job for pushing through!

    P.S. - I'm glad to see you blogging more often again! I've been horrible at commenting but reading is still a favorite activity of mine :)

    -Irina

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    1. Thanks so much, Irina! I really appreciate the positive feedback.

      Oh my gosh, the more I run the more I realize how much it is a mental exercise on top of the physical challenge. I read something once on the pluses/minuses of trying to focus on your running versus trying to distract yourself (e.g. with music, friends, etc.). I think I prefer distraction, haha.

      Awww, you are so sweet to say that it's nice to see me blogging more! Likewise - I absolutely love reading your blog as well as everyone else's blog. Sometimes the schedule gets too hectic to keep up with posting comments, though, especially since it's hard to do so while on the go. I know that you understand and relate!!!

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  9. Woohoo! Congrats, Emily! The weather that night was definitely PR-friendly, and I'm so excited for you that you had such a great race :)

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    1. Thanks so much, Bethany! This cooler summer has been heavenly for all of us runners, yes? It feels like fall outside and I just love it. =) Congratulations to you too on achieving your goals at the BTN 10K!!!!! (I'm dying to try that Hudsonville ice cream, now, btw...)

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  10. Congrats on your PR, Emily! That's awesome! I didn't even realize that the 10K runners circled the course twice. I'm not sure how I would have felt about that...

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    1. Thanks so much, Meghan! It really was so great to finally meet you in person that night!!!

      Yes, it was mentally really tough to have to circle the course twice! Especially since there were so many rough patches that were tough enough to navigate once, let alone twice. I'll take the loop courses with nonrepeating scenery anyday. You too?

      See you at ZOOMA this Saturday!!!. And yay for getting to see you twice in 10 days! =)

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  11. I know Midwest winters are tough, but man, those summer running views probably make it all worth it. What a beautiful place to run!

    Congrats on the PR! No matter how small, a PR is a PR! And I know you've been slowly working towards chipping away at it. Kudos, Friend!

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    1. You know, it's funny - every winter, pretty much everyone asks each other why the heck we live in the Midwest. But you are absolutely right - the summers make it all worth it. Actually, I am more of a fan of the fall. Summers here can be humid and uncomfortable but I think fall is heavenly!

      Thank you so much for the kind words on my PR! I really appreciate your support!!!!! =)

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  12. Beating your 13 year old PR is great! Unique post-race activities and food is fun, too!

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    1. Thank you so much, Tina! Indeed, Esprit de She is a really wonderful organizer. They really know what women enjoy after running a race. Their events feel like nights out on the town with a few hundred of your best running friends. =)

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