This was my first official 10K and honestly it was the race that made me fall in love with the distance.
Seeing as it was in NYC and I'm about a 2 hour commute away, I decided the week of the race to go in and pick up my packet as the race organizers recommended the Thursday before the race. This ended up being very beneficial: since I'd already tested out my travel plans for packet pickup, I knew exactly where to go to get to the starting line on time. It was pure fun! The only downside to that though was the added cost of additional train tickets for a second trip into the city. Worth it to calm those pre-race jitters in my opinion!
I ran this Ladies-Only race with my cousin, which was a lot of fun. We got off the subway at Columbus Circle and practically walked right into our corral, killed an hour or so hanging out at the start, and off we went! As we fought our way up the street, I got caught up in the excitement and went out too fast - it was mostly flat but I remembered my experience on the Central Park Hills during the NYC Half back in March and so I saved some in the tank for the second mile as we got into the park, where the fun really started.
The spectators and volunteers lining the course made a huge difference – it’s hard not to feel energized when there’s a bunch of shirtless November Project dudes in tutus hanging off the streetlight poles banging cowbells for you! The hills were tough, as hills tend to be, so I walked them and didn't care to pay too much attention to my time. I was more interested in having fun at this race than setting an unbelievable PR, especially with the heat and hills.
This is where I passed one or two women laid out on the grass with medics elevating their feet and icing them down – the heat was really no joke! But when I glanced down to see that I’d been running for just over an hour, I was shocked at how good I still felt. Once I spotted the 800 meters sign, I resisted the urge to take off so that I could finish strong. Soon the 400 meters sign was in sight and that’s when I gunned it past about a dozen or so women, smiling the whole way. The crowds lining the course were unbelievably happy and loud, so I gave it everything I had for a super strong finish – and crossed the line with an average pace of 12:29, which is pretty sweet considering the heat and hills!
I smiled the whole way through the finisher’s chute, got my medal and my flower (how cute is it that they give you a flower??), downed a cup of Gatorade and a cup of water, then snapped a victory selfie to remember that moment.
Once I met up with my cousin and husband, we made our way to the after party, where there were lines pretty much everywhere. This was the only downside to the whole race - the massages, snacks, photo ops in front of signs, free sunglass cleanings, etc - everything there was to do in the party was at the end of a line of about 50+ people, so we hung out for a minute and left.
Ultimately this is an awesome race that I highly recommend to my female running friends. There's nothing like running in Central Park, and NYRR knows their stuff when organizing a race so you're always going to have a great experience (even if it is a little crowded). A+!
Like I said before, this race has officially kicked off my love affair with the 10K distance, and I’m already searching for more to do in the next few months! It’s just long enough to be challenging but not so intense that the training cuts into my life and drains me. Plus you get medals at a lot of them, what’s not to love about that?!