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Love 2 Run Event Recap

by Chris Culbertson, posted Feb 15th 2009, 21:21

Yesterday I participated in the first ever Love 2 Run 4 Mile Run benefitting Head for the Cure the Chris Anthony Brain Tumor Research Fund.  I was a little hesitant at first because I have not been able to run much lately.  I have been working out using the eliptical machine because I have been experiencing some discomfort in my left knee.  To add to that, it was a 4 miler which is a bit longer than the traditional 5K and it was a cold windy morning.  But, the cause is good and there is always a great atmosphere surrounding these events.  Over 900 poeple showed up to run in the first year of the event, which is unheard of for the first year of an event.  This was also the first event that I know of that was mainly based on couples.  Due to my girlfriend having to work, I had to run alone in the Open division but knew several other people that were would be there and running as well.

Because I was unsure of my girlfriends work schedule I did not preregister for the event so I showed up pretty early in order to make sure I was able to register and prepare for the race.  The set up was great and I had no problem getting registered and prepared for the race.  I popped in my earphones from my iPhone’s iPod I jogged around a bit to try to get my blood pumping and get warmed up a bit.  The sun was out, which helped, but it was still cold and windy.  At the Downtown airport, there is not a whole lot around to block the wind.  That was not enough to keep Cupid(s) from making an appearance complete with bow and arrows.  As everyone gathered around the starting line, I prepared my iPhone App iMapMyRide so I could keep track of my pace as I made my way around the 4 mile course.

The race began and we were off.  I was surprised at how easy everyone got off and running.  Sometimes at the beginning of the run, when there are a lot of runners, it is a cluster and takes a while before you can get into a nice flow.  So we started off down the road and I held a decent pace for the first half mile or so.  I did not want to ware myself out early and wanted to feel out how my knee would hold up.  After reaching the south side of the airport, about 1 mile in, I felt very comfortable and upped my pace just a bit.  I held together about a 9:45 pace through the first three miles and decided to push myself a bit in the fourth mile.  The course was pretty flat and open so it made it much easier than a lot of road runs.  The only tough part was the wind on the back side and two small hills.  As I reached the three and a half mile mark, I was right at an average pace of 9:40 and still feeling pretty good.  I ran the last half mile about as hard as I could to push myself and see what I was made of.  My phone died due to lack of battery so I was no longer able to see my pace and had no music.  It was just me and the elements.  I finished strong and came accross the line at 38:23 according to the official clock, which means I was probably at about 38:10 or so, since it took me 10 to 15 seconds to pass the starting line after the race began.  That means my pace was at about 9:32.5 per mile for the four miles.  Not too bad considering my last 5K time.  I am still not as fast as I would like to be, but this is the start of a fun year of a lot of events for me and improving my times throughout the year is the goal.

View more fun pictures, action pictures, and race results.

I have to give a shout out to my good buddy, Caleb Teague and his girlfriend Connie Abbott for their impressive times and FIRST PLACE FINISH!!!  Caleb took third overall for the males and Connie ran away with first place in for the females.

Caleb and Connie will be at the Vertical Dash for Diabetes coming up March 7th.  As will I and hopefully you!

Did you run in the Love 2 Run 4 Mile Run?  How did you do?  What did you think of the event?

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