Our eleventh stupid thing found us in Ohio on Thanksgiving (US) morning with about 7,000 other “stupid” people. In a feeble attempt to justify the gluttony that was to follow at that evening’s dinner, the mass of us lined up to run 5 miles (8 km, for the Canadians in the crowd) at full-throttle, through the streets of Miamisburg. Some of the participants even managed to purge some of their breakfast while running, thus making even more room for their forthcoming turkey feast (yes, sadly I ran through someone’s regurgitated corn flakes before I noticed the puddle my shoe was in).
While we’ve recently been doing training runs of 5 miles and longer, this was our first 5-mile race. The psychology of this race was definitely different from our usual 5k races. Jen’s family did the race with us, and on our way to the race her brother Doug make a very astute comment – he said “the only problem with racing 5 miles is running it too fast”. Given he knows what he’s talking about (Doug has run marathons and relay ultras, so he’s been around the block a few times!) – I decided to take his advice to heart. My strategy was to scale back from my usual 5k pace a bit, to think endurance, and to keep reminding myself that pain is temporary!
So for this 8k I was aiming for 52 minutes – a 10:30 min/mile pace, which is a fair bit slower than my 5k race pace. I made it in at 51:42 – well under my goal time – so needless to say I was very happy! Jen also made it in very close to her goal time and came in at 55:58! Doug of course was back, well-rested, hydrated, and waiting for us at the finish line by the time we sauntered through (he probably even had time to run home and throw the turkey in the oven!).
Hopefully one of these days, if we keep training hard, we’ll manage to give him a run for his money! Jen’s mom, Nancy, and sister, Lorna, joined us at this race too by participating in the 1-mile walk option. It was great to be cheered in to the finish line by supportive faces! I think it was the first time that we’ve had that, and it really was quite a treat!
The 31st annual Turkey Trot was organized by the Ohio River Road Runners Club – and by organized, I mean ORGANIZED! By far the largest event we’ve attended yet, it was also the most well-organized race we’ve participated in as well. Race-kit pickup was smoother than you can imagine, pace markers were clearly visible at the start-line, and each mile marker had a digital clock with a running chrono. And of course we cannot forget the long-sleeve technical t-shirt with the picture of a giant turkey! Other race organizers can learn a thing or two from these folks!
Of course with any race kit comes a number bib, and the safety pins with which to attach the bib. We figure that between the two of us, we’ve probably amassed over 100 safety pins over the course of this year. Aside from the one or two that are used to hold up our pants that are now too big on us, most of these sit in a container on Jen’s desk, collecting dust, and waiting to be put to some use. Fortunately, today’s safety pins had a much more utilitarian destiny – they were promptly used to fix a broken toilet lever chain at Jen’s mom’s cabin (can’t have a broken toilet on Thanksgiving day!). But this got us to thinking about other innovate ways to rescue our other safety pins from their dusty destiny. Here is the start of our list – feel free to add new ideas of your own!
1) Impromptu date and have no jewellery to wear? Easy – string together safety-pins to make a dashing necklace/bracelet set!
2) Keep a few in a first-aid kit to use for closing gaping wounds if you’re too far from a hospital to be able to get stitches
3) Emergency landing feature for a hot-air balloon – if only that little boy in Colorado had one in his pocket…oh no, wait…never mind!!
4) If you happen to lose a body piercing and want to keep the hole open until you buy a new one – a well-sanitized safety pin could be your best friend!
5) Find yourself hungry and near a lake full of tasty fish just waiting to be caught? A safety pin can make a perfect fishin’ hook!
Till next time folks!
