Let's go for a run

I ran my first race! Ok, really not much to brag about, it was only a 5k. Nevertheless, I paid the fee, got a number, tied the timing chip onto my shoe, beat my fastest time and got a t-shirt at the end. I was quite pleased:)

Now for the details: This past Saturday morning I woke up before 7:00 and rode my bike to the rendezvous point for our little convoy to the race - the American Embassy in front of the sea. Leora had arranged for us to get a ride with some of her friends that work in the embassy and it was great to go over there as part of a group and have all the camaraderie. That's the group in the picture.

As for the race itself, I had wanted to run it in under 30 minutes, but had never done so on the treadmill. We were off with the sound of the gun firing. I thought that we'd be running on asphalt, but it turns out we ran on a sand/rock/dirt path that winded through farms and orange groves. With the sun rising and the crisp air of the morning, it turned out to be a beautiful setting for my first race. Leora and I ran side by side for most of the race and then at the end I decided to give it a final push and hope to break my time. For about the last 250 meters I broke into a full sprint and finished just under 30 minutes - 29:50 (around 9 minute miles). I knew the exact time because they have special chips that you tie to your shoe and you get the results shortly after you finish. The next day I wore my shirt around proudly. My next goal: A 10K in February that I'll run in under an hour.

Yesterday I decided to see how fast I could run a mile on the treadmill and I did it in 7 minutes, 30 seconds. I might have been able to go a little faster, but it's hard to know what my breaking point will be on the machine. I look forward to the challenge of getting faster!