Donor Dash 5k 2009

My July 5k was the "family tradition" race, the Donor Dash in Washington Park. This race--which was, incidentally, my first 5k--is put on by the Donor Alliance and honors, as you might guess, organ donors and recipients. Now, most races support one cause or another; and while I believe that is honorable and important, it's never a determining factor for me. But this one is different because I have a personal connection. Since my mother was an organ donor, I feel this is an important race for me and my family to support; which is why we've run it almost every year for the past 4 (we missed 2007 because we were in London).

One of the interesting things about doing a race over and over again is watching things change, particulary the number of participants. The BolderBOULDER is a great example of this, because each year more and more people sign up for it (upwards of 50,000 this year!). And, although it has a long way to go before even approaching those kind of numbers, the Donor Dash is similarly exploding. When we first ran it in 2006, there were 952 registered runners. This year, they had over 3,000! If things continue like this, they may have to move it out of Washington Park in a few years.

The night before the race, I was at my alma mater, Regis Jesuit High School, for my 15-year class reunion. That was a fun opportunity to catch up with several friends I haven't spoken to or even seen in the past 15 years (even with Facebook, I've connected with only a very few, and that very casually). The food was great; and, while not my usual pre-race meal, it certainly fit the bill. And as the evening wore on (a lovely expression. With your permission, I'll say it again: "The evening wore on."), I enjoyed hearing stories about what my old friends had been up to for the past decade-and-a-half, and regaling them with stories of my own race exploits. I even spent some time trying to convince one of them to come out and join Runner's Edge of the Rockies for a Saturday morning run (c'mon, Goody, you know you want to)! But about 9:00 I figured it was time for me to head back home, to get a solid night's sleep before the Big Race.

Sunday morning was cool, but the lack of clouds in the sky promised that it would get pretty warm pretty quick. In spite of that, I felt confident that I would have a good race, and could even be on target for another PR. After my family and I walked over to the starting area, I set myself up close to the front, ready to go. At just after 8:00 (a slight delay caused by the huge number of race-day registrants), the horn sounded and we were off! I set an aggressive pace to start, and with first Aerosmith and then Guns N Roses blasting in my ears, I covered the first mile in 7:13 (as I confirmed later. I wasn't going to look at my watch this time. The volunteer calling out times said "7:24" when I passed, but it had taken me a few seconds to cross the start line).

Unlike at most 5k races in Wash Park, the water station was set at about 1.3 miles in (it's usually halfway). As I approached, I wrestled with the decision to stop for a drink and eventually did so. I felt like I was still on pace for about a 7:15 second mile, and a few moments' walking didn't seem likely to hurt much. I worried a bit about making it through the rest of the race if the water station was set this close, but reasoned that there might be another one at about 2.5. Sure enough, there was. Good thing, too, as my pace had started to slip thanks to the sun starting to warm things up. My walk break through the second aid station was slightly longer than the first, but I still felt that I was making good time so I wasn't too concerned.

5ks in Washington Park run one and a half loops around the park. As I came around to the south side of the Park on my second lap, I began passing walkers about halfway done with their first mile. Just as the course turned towards the finish, a bit before the 3 mile mark, I heard someone call my name. I glanced to my left and saw my kid sister Maggie(!) and her husband Marty, who waved. I waved back and turned into the last tenth of a mile, turning up the juice as much as I had left. In the distance I could see the finisher's clock, just turning over 23:30. Determined to come in under 24 minutes, I cranked up as much as I could. All of my attention was focused on that clock. Just before it read 24:00, I crossed the finish line.

After I finished, I walked along the course to look for and cheer on my family. My dad, who after the Father's Day 5k last month has been training (on the Stairmaster. Dad, if you want to be a faster runner, you should train on the track!), came over the 3 mile mark some time later. I hollered for him to pick up for a strong finish, but he didn't hear me--his iPhone was cranked up too loud! Ah well. About half a mile away from the finish I met up with my sister Sara. As I'd promised, I ran the rest of the race in with her, encouraging her to a strong finish as well. After that we waited in the shade for Maggie and Marty, who were walking with Sara's dog.

Everyone had a really great time at the race. It was nice for me, after spending an evening among old friends, to spend the morning with family; and nice for us all, I think, to do something to honor my mother.

Official Time: 23:59
Total Races: 15
YTD Race Miles: 109.7
YTD Total Miles: 666.7
Prerace beers (at reunion): 4