Race Report: 5k Pride of the Valley

This morning we headed to Baldwin Park for a 5k race for me and a 1k race for the kids.
The boys were VERY excited about running a race! 
Sorry about the amount of pics for this one!

We got there 30 minutes before the start of their race, got all 3 bibs and time chips.  First time the boys had time chips, they thought that was really cool.
Another cool thing: REAL bathrooms!

No goodie bag but cute t-shirt and they are light blue, a nice change from the always boring WHITE!  I had signed up without the shirt but once I saw it I decided to get it!

Weather was perfect.  It was 70 and no wind, could not ask for better than that.  Kids went to lined up for the start.  That was the first time that they would go without me.  Their course was a straight line with a u turn at the half way mark.  I knew Will would be fine for sure but Jonathan was a little nervous about going without mom! 

CHIP TIME like Mommy!

Here it looks like Jonathan is telling Will "You know I could beat you right?" !

See #505? in the middle with a racer top..he was the winner..by a lot, a real pro, comes from a family of runners, great running style and super fast.

See #505?...not there! Already gone !

Will took off super fast and I wondered if he could hold that pace.....the u turn was too far and we could not see how they were doing and I wanted to stay at the finish to see them cross the line.  So we waited....the winner came in all alone looking like a pro and then I saw a red shirt and I realized it was not Will....it was Jonathan!!!!!  He beat his big brother!!! OOOPSY!  On the picture it is him in the front and Will is in the middle behind the 2 girls.

Look at his fists!!!

Will followed a few seconds later.  He said he started too fast and he was not disapointed that his brother came before him so I was happy about that.   Jonathan said "I ran the kids marathon faster then you Will!!"  Here is Will's finish:

 Time: Jonathan 4:51 and Will 5:06.  Winner: 3:14!!!
They were both super happy and they both said "Thank you for signing me up!" :)

My turn next!
This was my 22nd race!  I started this racing thing 17 mos ago. 
The course was 100% flat.  They runners that were there were also VERY fast.  I think it was the fastest start I have ever been a part of so far.  I felt like I was not moving and I looked at my watch and I was going 8:20!  I knew I had to slow down if I wanted a PR and I did.  I looked at my watch often, I wanted to make sure I was going fast enough but also not too fast for the first 2 miles, I wanted to finish strong this time.

 I felt pretty good first 2 miles.  I got a stitch at 2.25 miles and I did my best to ignore it and just keep the pace.  For the last mile we could see the Finish Line ahead of us.  I tried to ignore it because usually that makes me PANIC. 

Oh Yeah I chicked a few guys!  Don't know why my tongue is sticking out!

The verdict?
A new PR! My best time was 29:52 and today I did 29:29.  7th AG.  I am happy.
I finished strong.  I ran negative splits and I got a PR.

This was a GOOD DAY!