Swiss Days 5k, where I set a personal worst :)

Ok it was slow on purpose because I was running it with a 2 year old and I think I ended up carrying him for over a mile plus I am pretty sure I ran backwards for a 1/4 mile to a 1/2 mile.

So we decided to make the Swiss Days a family 5k every year we probably jumped the gun by a year because Oliver who turns 3 in a month was unable to finish but he did have a blast. I am not sure of their thinking and timing on this race as it is a week before the marathon but if I were running it I think I would have a good chance to AG (Justin took 3rd in our AG with a 22:16 and we are about the same speed and run a lot of race together with similar times) as it seems not a lot of the super fast run it with the marathon next week. I am one of those I didn't want to injure myself with just a week to go so it has just become a family fun run to do (it was my wives first ever 5k today). The race starts at 7am and you have to shuttle in my 6:30am but the race is less than 5 minutes from my house so it sucks but at least you don't have to drive that far to get there. It still meant waking an almost 3 year old up at 6am who gives you that what the frak are you thinking look do you know what time it is (I think he would do better at an 8am or 9am event).

So we get everything together and get out the door for the shuttles. My sister in law was also doing the race for her weight watchers as her first ever 5k and because she also gets a discount on her health insurance by doing a 5k. So we met up there with her at the start where they do this crazy aerobic workout before the race. I thought it was crazy 2 years ago and I still think its crazy now (this was the 3rd race I ever did in 2010). We line up all the way in the back and we take off. My sister in law stayed with us for maybe the first 1/4 mile before she ran on. Oliver was having a ton of fun running with everybody but about mile 1 he began to poop out. So I picked him up and carried him the next half mile or so (you think running is hard try doing it carrying 40 pounds). I was trying to keep us away from the sweep van (well i don't think they swept anybody but it was a cop car at the end of the race following us). My wife got a little grumpy with me when she had to run to catch up but at least I got a good lead on that darn sweep car. It was at this point Oliver got a second wind and I put him down and he took off again, it was funny to see him with a second wind. I was running backwards at this point (do they give awards for the person who runs the biggest portion of the race backwards because they should as I probably ran 1/2 mile backwards) to urge him on and he was chasing me. He tired out again around mile 2 and I ended up carrying him so more.

He did pretty good he probably ran half of the race to maybe 2 miles. What was funny is after the race while we are waiting for the raffle (we won 2 free shirts and a hat with our 3 bibs) he is running around all crazy like. I think a later start and he could have finished the race as he definitely had plenty of energy after he woke up. He didn't get to win youngest racer because I carried him about a mile of the race (a little 2 year old girl did run the whole thing she was back there with us and pretty awesome) but he had a blast and so did I. I think our time was like an hour, my watch kept auto-stopping because I forgot to take off that feature and I kept stopping to help him it said 2.88 in 53:xx but I think we were closer to an hour so yeaaaaaaaa new personal worst. Final time ended up being 1:01:19.