TXU Energy Turkey Trot 5K

So this "running thing" isn't getting any less popular. This morning I was sitting behind a long line of cars waiting to exit the 610 freeway. We were all heading into the TXU Energy Turkey Trot and bunches of runners started leaving their cars (I hope they were passengers) and running down the off-ramp towards the start corral on Post Oak Boulevard.

As I'd find out from the public address announcer later, this year's event in the Uptown district had 13,000 registered. That's a lot more than I remembered from just a few years ago.

Anyway, those hurried souls were likely trying to make it to the starting gun of the 10K race. Fortunately, I had a bit more time to spare, because I was out for the more leisurely 5K that would start 30 minutes later. After needing almost all of that extra half hour to find a parking spot, I took off with the back of the pack along the streets surrounding The Galleria:

Mile 1 -- 11:41
Mile 2 -- 10:50
Mile 3 -- 9:57
Last .14 -- 1:18
Elapsed 5K time -- 33:48 per Garmin Forerunner 110

You're just going to have to trust my Forerunner time, as I opted to save five bucks by not getting a timing chip. With this type of race, there was no way I was threatening a PR today! It took about 10 minutes after the gun for me to reach the start line and after much non-tangential pathfinding, I think I finally got ahead of the packs of walkers around \the 2.99-mile point.

Now it's time for some football and family time. Happy Thanksgiving, and if you're thinking of running this event next year, plan on arriving an hour early!