Just Run for a Just Cause 10K

I began the morning by slicing a fingertip with one of my fingernails while tying the drawstring on my shorts.

Yup, that's the kind of pro runner I am.

After applying a Band-Aid and muttering, "Who does this!?" a few times, I was on my way to the Just Run for a Just Cause at Kingsland Baptist Church in Katy. I just wanted to give myself a little test to make sure I haven't forgotten too much about race execution.

I'll generously grade myself a D-plus for this one. The course is a semi-shaded 5K loop on suburban concrete. I would be circling it twice for 10K distance. The first loop went by in about 32 minutes. This was way too easy, so of course I immediately hit trouble in the form of lightheadedness and a feeling that control of my breathing was slipping away. I think I can put the blame on any combination of the following causes:

• A little too much caffeination before the race.
• An arcing sun dialing up the mid-morning temperature to almost 80F.
• Pushing the pace too fast too soon.
• More than the recommended daily allowance of running skirt sightings.

I decided that the smart thing to do was to slow down before I gave myself a lovely case of heat exhaustion. So I completed my second loop at long-run pace, basically keeping myself in line behind a guy sporting excellent facial hair and a finisher shirt from the Cowtown Half Marathon. With the power of Cowtown Soul Patch leading the way, I trundled back into the church parking lot in a total time of about 1:11, which is totally acceptable versus laying myself out on a random curb with my heartrate skyrocketing.

This run was a benefit event to fund aftercare for women rescued from human trafficking operations. The shirts given to today's registrants were created in a factory that gives these rescued women jobs outside of the sex trade. They sport a unique design, with the race name on the back and signatures of some of the workers on the front.

Today was the race debut of a new pair of shoes, the Asics Gel Phoenix. Interestingly enough, years ago I was in "shoe love" with Saucony's Grid Phoenix which was discontinued, so it's a wonderful happenstance that the competition also picked up the "Phoenix" moniker years later for mild stability running shoes. They even have the nice wide toebox that had been a Saucony hallmark.

So I'll close this report with a question: Before I run away with the stupid-injury crown, what is the wackiest race day injury you've had that had nothing to do with running the race itself?

The splits:

Mile 1 - 9:59
Mile 2 - 10:31
Mile 3 - 11:20
Mile 4 - 11:20
Mile 5 - 12:40
Mile 6 - 13:10
Last .2 - 2:30
10K Elapsed Time - 1:11:32 per Garmin Forerunner 205