Orem Firefighters 5K

Completely disregarding my pulled calf muscle and gimpy knee, I ran my first 5K of the year on Saturday morning. My injuries aside I actually did pretty well; the key was pacing myself and not caring if a bunch of people passed me. I just kept a steady stride and was able to run the whole race without injuring myself any further or getting a side stitch (something I get almost every time I run). The weather was great - it rained a bit at the beginning of the run and stayed overcast the rest of the time - keeping the sun out of my eyes and the temperatures cool. I finished with a time of 35:10, the best time I've had for a 5K so far.

The best part of the morning came after the run when they raffled off prizes donated by their sponsors. Most of them were small - water bottles, backpacks, helmets, flashlights, and a few small dome tents. They got down to the last prizes and they were a lot bigger - the biggest of which came at the very end. Up to that point I hadn't won anything, and I leaned over to the lady next to me and told her that I've never won anything in a raffle after a race, but I always stay for the whole thing just in case. Well it was a good thing I did because I won the last prize - a large Grizzly two-person sleeping bag that retails for $160! I'm still so excited that I won it. We'll definitely be putting it to good use this summer.

It was a great morning and I'm looking forward to doing more races this summer. My next race is the Freedom Festival 5K in Provo on the fourth of July. I can't wait!