WOW…first off I just want to thank everyone for all of their support for the Freeze Out 5k to End Homelessness!!! Whether comments of well wishes, financial donations, or sharing my (many) posts, I seriously can’t thank you all enough. They announced last night that over $23,000 was raised to support the Rescue Mission and bring those in need in out of the cold…that’s pretty damn awesome and couldn’t have been done without all of you!
The Rescue Mission staff and volunteers really went all out this year! For some they may not have noticed, but having the candles lining the Arena floor to represent the number of individuals in the beds at the shelter for that night (183) to the pop up Mission Store, Photo Booth, photo opportunities, Basket Raffles, and let’s not forget the BLING (race medal) – major props and kudos to the Rescue Mission on such an awesome event!
The race itself was a typical January night out on the OCC hill – WINDY! The temperatures were not nearly as cold as they’ve been in the past (a balmy 33 degrees at the start), but the winds were pretty intense that we were slightly concerned the Start/Finish arch was going to blow away! I’m pretty sure no one let any of the weather or winds stop them though as it was great to see so many participants of all ages out on the course. There were even a couple of dogs out there too!
I have absolutely no idea what my mile splits were due to technology problems on my end. My Garmin watch decided it wanted to freeze (no pun intended) when I unplugged it so I couldn’t use that and I somehow paused my Apple Watch at the start right as the gun went off and never got it to resume. Gotta love technology sometimes right? Even though I had those hiccups it probably benefited me because I had no idea what my pace was or the distance I had run so I wasn’t able to be in my own head at all and slow myself down.
I was both happy and disappointed with my time (27:48). Happy because I was seven seconds faster than last year, and finished under 9-minute pace wise (8:57), but disappointed because it wasn’t even close to my goal time for a 5k this year. At least I know the work I need to put in and what I need to do to go where I want to be!
I think it’s taken me longer than normal to write this recap because I wanted to find just the right words to recap it and tie it all together. I don’t think I really captured the emotion of the race and the reason for being there. Maybe it will take a couple more days for it to all sink in and proceed, but for now it sort of felt like Christmas to me…there’s so much build up to that one special day and then it’s done – like someone just turns the lights to OFF and it’s over with. I believe I hung out at the After Party longer than normal last night because I didn’t want that end moment to come. I’m sure all of those on the Rescue Mission’s side are happy for a sigh of relief today, but let’s be honest, until we do End Homelessness the fight isn’t over. Maybe that’s why I’m already looking at the date for the Ride and Run for the Rescue happening June 24, 2017 at Long Branch Park and seeing how I can fit it into my calendar. Who knows…maybe I’ll tackle the Ride portion of the Course for a change…Ridin’ 4 a Reason has a pretty good sound to it too!
Seriously, I can’t thank you all enough for all of the support you provide me. You’ll be seeing posts soon for the next worthy cause, but until then training calls!