Run Like the Wind(ed)

There has been quite a bit of running going on around here lately. My running posts are stacking up, so I decided to cram them all into one long nice post. Let's run with it...

I thought I would start with Alpine Days. That is where we left off in track. Tyler likes to call Alpine Days the 'Junior High Olympics.' All the best athletes who have won consistently in their events now come together to show off. It is very organized. They have multiple rounds and everybody is stacked by their previous times.

It was funny because we were watching the Boys 100 and Tyler said, "It's like they just keep getting faster." I said, "They do. The faster runners run last. Each heat is indeed made of faster runners."

We had to wait quite a while for June's event. This is when Robyn was watching. She ended up going home early. (It was her birthday and I don't think she wanted to spend it at the track although she does support her sister.)

There were two heats for the mile. It was sad because June's friend Christina just missed getting into the second heat with the faster runners. She ran in the first heat and was clearly the favorite to win. She did a great job, especially considering that she didn't have anyone to pace her. She finished first in her heat by quite a distance.

Here is June's group getting ready to run. They are lined up by their times during the season. June is in 10th position.

She had a great run. She was up against some really fast girls and she kept up a great pace to get a personal record. Too bad you can't see it because this guy decided to stand right in front of the clock. Could he be in a worse place? I know he is probably recording something important, but he wasn't standing there for ANY of the other races. (I think her time was 6:13)

She came in 9th overall which was great because she was seeded 10th, so she must have passed someone, but it was also sad because they only officially recognize the top 8 runners, so she just missed out.

It was so fun to watch June run that I decided to sign her up for a 5K. Our orthodontist was sponsoring one, so I got her registered. I didn't want her to run alone, so in a moment of stupidity, I signed up as well. Dumb. First off...it is not like I can run with her. My pace isn't even close to hers. Second, I have not been running or working out in months. I suddenly wished there was an undo button. Alas, no such luck.

The day of the race came and I won't lie...it wasn't pretty. I thought I was going to die. June took off like a shot. She was awesome. I ran the whole thing without stopping and regretted it for days. This is me trying to smile after the event. (I'm really trying.)

June did great! She came in first in her age division. (I think I came in 8th in mine.) You can see her time here. 25:30. I was only five minutes behind her with a 30:08.

It was really fun to be there together though. There was french toast and creamies, both of which I would have enjoyed more if I could breath. We ran into Vieve who used to work with Tyler. She and her friend Janille have been running races together for years.

It started to rain, but we had to stick around for June to collect her HUGE! medal. That thing was crazy big. Good job Junie.

The kids school puts on a 5K/mile each year. We have participated many times. But it has gone downhill the last couple of years. In 2015 we didn't go. I think they had skimmed it down to a mile run with food trucks that came to the school. Lame.

This year, they brought back the 5K and they were still doing the mile. Since June had been running and loving it, I signed us all up. Well...not all of us. Tyler twisted his ankle badly a month or so ago, so no running for him. I thought Pearl would do best at the mile, and me? Well, I volunteered to man a water station. (It was too soon after the last 5K and my body wasn't ready for that torture again.)

We showed up on race day and I was really disappointed. Only 25 people signed up for the 5K. I dutifully manned my position at the mile 2 marker.

I had great help. Tyler rode the Grom and told me when runners were headed my way and Pearl was great at handing out water.

No surprise that June was the fourth person I saw go past the station.

Ivory was right behind her.

Robyn was quite a bit farther back, but I had told her not to run hard because she had a swim tryout the next day and I didn't want her to be tired.

Daisy was right there with Robyn and apparently Jana as well.

There were no prizes for any age group. There was only a raffle at the end. It was kind of a let down all around. Pearl ran the mile and was pretty amazing. She ran the whole thing and came in toward the front of the pack. There is definite potential for a runner in her. (Lest you think the fund raiser was a bust, more people signed up for the mile. Over 100 as far as I know.)

The kids did come home with some sidewalk chalk (which will be well used) but I think that was our last school run.

Several things came together for this next run. Vieve (who we saw at the Provo 5K) told us about Springville's Art City Nestle 5K. She said they have great goodie bags and an awesome raffle at the end. I already knew I didn't want to run it, but seeing Ivory do so well at the school run, I signed up June and Ives for one more 5K. We were up early to attend, but these two seemed very chipper.

This was one popular event. There were almost 1,500 people running. And amazingly, my kids managed to find Vieve in the crowd before the event started. That takes some skill. (Vieve...you were stretching. Not sure if you even knew I was taking a picture.)

This was an excellent run for me. I sent the kids off and then wandered over to the track to watch the finishers come in. Oh, here comes June. Good job! 26:11. 7th in her age group.

Now Ivory is making her victory lap. Nice finish! 30:17. 12th in her age group. I pointed out that I had run faster than she had last time I did a 5K and she pointed out there was a large hill on the course. (In that case, she would have beaten my time. Probably explains why June's time was a little slower too.)

These two did a fantastic job. They got popsicles and apples and we all found a seat to wait for the raffle.

Vieve (who got third place in her age group!) was NOT kidding about the awesome raffle. There were so many amazing prices, from hammocks to Go Pros. One kid even won $300 in cash. Spoiler: We did not win anything, but it was still fun to listen to all the excited people get their prizes. It took forever though. We sat on that field in the sun for an hour. I now know why everyone brought chairs and umbrellas. We entertained ourselves taking pictures. Don't judge...it was a long hour in the sun. I'll only show you my favorites. :)

No more running for a while. At least no more 5Ks. June is actually starting to run with the cross country kids in the mornings. She can't do XC until 9th grade, but she likes the morning workout. More power to her. She will be in great shape at the end of this summer, and I will have no food in my house trying to keep up with her metabolism. Wish me luck.