Happy Veteran’s Day! THANK YOU to all the men and women who sacrifice so much for us to live free!
I took the photo above yesterday morning after the Veteran’s Day 10K in Washington DC.
The race went well. I had a late night on Saturday, and it was tempting to sleep in and skip the race – but determination prevailed. I woke up & bundled up. It was a bit chilly out. I wore my long running tights & gloves for the first time this season.
I was a little late getting to the race. As I was approaching the starting line, I could hear the announcer say, “Last call for the 10K runners.” I sprinted to the starting line, and just kept running. The race had already started and I was in the very back of the pack. I started working my way up past the walkers and some slower runners. I didn’t mind the late start. I prefer to pass runners than to be the one that is being passed. After the rushed start, I soon settled in to a comfortable pace. I started to warm up, and enjoy the beautiful fall scenery. Then, a little past mile two I started to see the elite runners on my left. They had already made the turn around and were about 2 miles from the finish line. Talk about impressive! I also saw a few older runners on the course powering through the run, a guy running with an American flag, and 2 soldiers dressed in combat uniforms running with rucks (military backpacks weighing about 40 pounds). I would definitely do this race again – only next year I’ll work in a little more time post race for some local sightseeing. I really should take more advantage of my close proximity to our nation’s capital. Here’s one more photo from Saturday – good ole’ Abe 
It was the perfect distance leading up to my BIG race this weekend – the Philadelphia Marathon – more on that later this week!
As for the earlier parts of last week, I didn’t have a chance to write much, so to give you a brief update – I successfully completed 3 AM runs (not including Saturday’s race). And I was rewarded with some beautiful fall scenery:
Have a great week followers. Get out there and enjoy it while you can! Rumor is we’re expected to have a cold snowy winter this year.
I love reading your blog! Maybe I'll be able to join you for a half marathon in the future…working my way up! You are definitely an inspiration to me!