Shape Up Montana "Virtual" 5K Fun Run Review

For the fourth consecutive year, my Montana family and I are participating in Shape Up Montana. It's a three-month fitness and nutrition program offered through Big Sky State Games. Each team member earns points for their team based on the activity they do. Teams compete against each other based on an average points-per-person comparison. This year, in addition to participating on my own team, I also helped organize and coordinate three teams at the school where I work. All of our teams are having a lot of fun getting in shape through friendly competition.

Registered Shape Up Montana participants receive a t-shirt and a printable bib to wear for the Fun Run.

Each week, Shape Up Montana issues a different Weekly Challenge. The week of March 21-27, the challenge was to participate in a Virtual 5K Run/Walk. In the past, my family team has done this together on the farm. This year, I thought it would be cool to organize a fun run on a slightly larger scale and invite anyone from any of our area teams to join. So, I organized a very informal "All-Comers 5K Fun Run/Walk," which was held this past Saturday of Easter weekend. It was a free, un-timed event for anyone to come and do, whether they are in Shape Up or not. No t-shirts, no race bibs, no swag, no post-race snacks. Just fitness and community.

With 36 people participating in Shape Up Montana on our four local teams, I thought there'd be a decent chance that some people would want to come and do it together, but I didn't really know what to expect for turnout.

Jeff and I arrived in town a little past 9:00 a.m. and marked the course with orange spray paint for the run/walk, which would start at 10:00. Around 9:15 or so, the first participants began to show up. You may recall that I'm one of the Track and Field coaches for our High School team. As coaches, we decided that the student-athletes could participate in the Fun Run as a optional track practice-- these were the first attendees to arrive. I ended up having eight High School and two Junior High tracksters participate in the Fun Run, which I thought was pretty cool.

Here's the route. We started in front of the school and went around the block once, then around "The Loop" once before finishing back in front of the school. 

We warmed up as a team in the gym, and as it began to approach 10:00 a.m., other community members, Shape Up Montana participants, family, and friends began to trickle in. I didn't count, but I'd estimate we had a turnout of 35-40 people. I consider that to be pretty successful. It was about 35 degrees outside with a little bit of wind, so I don't know whether that affected anyone's decision to come out or not, but overall, I thought that was pretty good weather for this time of year.

I gathered everyone at the start/finish line a little before 10, thanked them for coming, explained what Shape Up Montana is and described the route we'd be taking, and then we were off!

Jeff and I ran very close to the same pace, and Harvey ran with us, too. We decided this time to keep him off-leash and see how he would do. He stayed near both of us the entire race, and he had the good sense to do "his business" out in a farm field where we wouldn't have to pick it up. Harvey was a little nervous with all the people gathered around at the start of the race, but once we started running, he seemed to enjoy himself. If we continue to take him to fun runs, I'm hoping we can continue to do it off-leash. After the race, Harvey enjoyed lots of pets and scratches from the track kids and other race participants. And, he was the First Place Dog (aka only dog)- I think that sealed the deal for him having a nice time!

As far as my own "race," well, I struggled to catch my wind and the whole three mile run really felt like it took more effort than normal. I timed myself using my Strava app and I finished in 28:51, which is on the slower side for me. To be fair, I didn't really warm up adequately, and I had slept very poorly the night before, so maybe that's why I didn't run that fast. Either way, the event was more about other people having a good time than it was for me to get a PR or anything like that, so it didn't bother me too much.

Jeff was really happy with his time, which was about five seconds behind mine. He has been working really hard to bring his 5K times down, and has had a lot of success on the treadmill that hasn't translated outside. This "race" was a good confidence booster for him, and a new outdoor PR!

Jeff and I waited around the finish line for other people to reel it in. I cheered especially loud for my track athletes as they crossed the line. Our season has just begun, and many of them are not really in shape to run 3.1 miles yet, but their performances really impressed me. We even had a few throwers who came and ran and did very well. As soon as all the track kids came in, we went back in the gym to static stretch as a team and I congratulated them on a job well done.

Then, I headed back outside to watch more people finish and cheer on family members- Tom and Carol both walked it. Afterwards, Jeff and I joined them and another group of walkers at the Cafe for some post-race fueling.

All in all, I consider the event to be a great success. I organized it with minimal effort and tagged it as a Free, All-Comers Fun Run/Walk. No goody bags, no t-shirts, no bibs, no awards or prizes, no post-race snacks-- just fitness and community. I am really pleased with the turnout on a cool day with minimal advertising. All in all, the numbers were pretty good. As I said, we had 10 track athletes, plus 9 or 10 Shape Up Montana participants, and many other community members. Most of all, everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves and to be glad they had come out. To me, that is the most satisfying feeling- that I helped organize an event to build community through fitness and exercises. Mission: accomplished!

Getting ready for the start of the run!

Coralville 4th Fest 5K Race Recap

I mentioned in my previous post that I had done a 5K while I was in Iowa. I love to schedule a race while I'm traveling because it forces me to get out and get active, especially when it may be so much easier to just lounge and laze the trip away. This time, I found the Coralville 4th Fest 5K and convinced a few family and friends to do it, too!

Long before we left for our Iowa trip, I had scouted the interwebs for possible 5Ks to run. The best place to look for Iowa road races and active events is on the Fitness Sports website: www.fitnesssports.com. Fitness Sports is a running store located in West Des Moines, where I used to buy all my running shoes back in high school and college and where I always refer my friends. They have, for a long, long time, put every road race they can get info for on their website, organized in calendar form. Super handy when planning your Iowa racing schedule or when looking for a race while traveling!

Anyway, I found the info for the Coralville 4th Fest 5K Fun Run and thought it would be the perfect chance to sneak a race in with some family and friends. Jeff and I had stayed with my friends Wade and Nicole and their sweet kids the night before the race, and they decided to join us for the run. As did my brother Ryan and my Dad. My Mom and Ryan's girlfriend Marissa were there, too, as moral support and photographers. So great to have such a big, fun group to run with!


Start time for the race, which started and ended at the Coralville Recreation Center, was 8:00 a.m. We got there in plenty of time to register on race day and use the bathroom. It appeared as though the turnout was between 100 and 150 people. Pretty small race but definitely bigger than some we've run, especially here in Montana! Signups were fairly well-organized. We got our race t-shirts when we signed up, too:

I don't really understand the design. I don't know why they didn't just use the logo that they had on their signs and on their website:

Instead, these t-shirts are about as silly as it gets for a race tee! The clock is running but it's OK because it's "Lovin' every minute of it." Does that have anything to do with the 4th Fest in Coralville? or the Rec Center? I don't know. Whatever. Add this t-shirt to the stack of other race tees that are ultimately destined to be used in a t-shirt quilt. Besides, I secretly have a fond admiration for 5K race t-shirts that are silly, absurd, tacky, or make no sense. This one definitely fits that bill!

Soon it was time to line up to start the race. The temperatures were in the mid to upper 60's but man was it HUMID! There was definitely a lot of sweating happening. The race website also stated that the course was hilly, and they weren't wrong about that. Click here to view a course map. Almost immediately after starting the race, we rounded a bend and began a long uphill climb. I had started out pretty conservatively on the race because I'd been having some knee pain and I wasn't sure how my knee was going to feel. After I started going, though, it felt mostly OK-- not great, but OK. So, when we got to the hill I really tried to power up it and I passed quite a few people on that first hill.  Most of the course was run on bike paths and neighborhood streets. It was a pleasant course to look at overall, but the hills were definitely tough.

As the race went on, I continued to pass more people here and there and was feeling OK. They didn't have their miles marked and I don't have a fancy GPS running watch (but lately I've been thinking that I'd like to get one...) so I wasn't really sure of my pace. It wasn't until we rounded the last few corners and I knew we were getting close to the finish line that I thought I'd have a chance to get my PR. I sprinted as best as I could to the finish, which was all downhill...and then I forgot to hit the "stop" button on my watch. And, the race event officials didn't time the race. So, as near as I could tell, I finished with a time somewhere between 26:30 and 27:30. I'm not really sure. So, I don't know if I got a PR, but it might have been close. Time to start thinking about getting a Garmin or Soleus or something similar.

Wade and Ryan had both finished ahead of me, and Mom and Marissa were there to greet everyone at the finish line, too. As we crossed the line, they tore off the bottom part of our bibs, ostensibly to take note of finishing order. Mom got some nice finish photos of us approaching the line. We cheered people in and milled around for a bit. Then, there was a "Kids Marathon" of 26.2 yards, which was basically a run from one end of the parking lot to the other, that Wade and Nicole's daughter Addison completed. Super, super cute! She was pretty pleased with her finishers ribbon. 

Ryan, Jeff, Me and my Dad approaching the finish of the race.

By now, we had scouted out the apparent results of the race and it looked like I had earned a 3rd place age-group prize, so we thought we'd wait around a little while longer for the awards ceremony just to be sure. We waited... and waited... an hour came and went and they still hadn't gotten to the awards. Apparently there were some disputes among runners over their finishing order and it turned out that the race officials hadn't kept the bib numbers in the correct order as people crossed the finish line, so they weren't sure of the actual finishing order. But, not to worry, because for some reason, even though they hadn't timed the race, they had someone who was video recording all the finishers crossing the line. So, their plan was to review all the video and note the bib numbers of people as they crossed the line. Then they could be absolutely sure about the finishing order and who won which prizes. They planned to do that later in the day and call the winners so they could come back and pick up their prize. So, after waiting around for quite some time, we finally dispersed and went our own ways.

This event left a bit to be desired in terms of organization, but overall the race was fun and I'm glad we did it. Most of all, I enjoyed the chance to be active outdoors with friends and family I don't get to see very often. Thanks to everyone who came along to join us!

**UPDATE: Earlier this week, on July 1, I DID get a call from the Coralville Rec Center asking when I was planning to come in to pick up my award from the Fun Run. So, I had won a plaque for being the 3rd Place Female, Age 30-39 (It's a major award, guys!) Even after explaining that I live in Montana and couldn't jaunt down there to pick it up, they were disinclined to mail it to me. My brother's promised to pick it up for me so I assume I'll see it next time I see him. :)

Dawson's Run Race Recap

Sometimes the best races are the ones with the most familiar faces. That's what Dawson's Run in Joplin, MT has become for me, Jeff, and our family. This community fun run was began four years ago to honor the memory of a local child named Dawson who had tragically passed away. Proceeds from the race each year go to a memorial scholarship in his honor and to the Joplin Memorial Park. This is the third year I have run in this race and it has been really cool to see how it has grown in the past few years. The best thing about this race is how many community members, friends, and families come together. The atmosphere is always festive, even when the weather hasn't been.

If you're a racing elitist with no sense of community, this may not be the run for you. They don't use race numbers, sign up is sort of done via Facebook just to reserve a t-shirt (then you pay and register on race day), and this year there was no timer for the event. So, if you need to have a race bib, advanced online registration and chip timing or fancy things like that, this is probably not your run. I think the absence of those things just brings it all back to making the community, the people, and Dawson, who is the REASON for the race, the stars of the show. I love this race and I hope they keep it true to its Joplin roots for as long as they want!  While it is really fun to do big races like Governor's Cup or the like, there's always going to be a place in my racing itinerary and my heart for small town gems like Dawson's Run.

This year, the Bangs contingency had a large presence: Jeff and I were there along with Tom, Carol, Josh, Katie and Brandon. Standing around before the race is always fun because it feels like a community reunion of sorts. People from up and down the Hi-Line and all around gather for Dawson's Run. It's always fun to say hello and catch up with people you haven't seen in a while. This year felt like the biggest turnout for the event that I have seen in the three years I've done it. There were a lot of people there, and everyone seemed happy and excited!  Katie and I were remarking before the race about how many people where there and just how cool of an event it is.

Josh, Katie, and Brandon were in town this year for the race and accompanying weekend festivities. 

The race itself includes your choice between running or walking either a 1 mile or 5K course. They do a great job measuring out the distance for the 5K--it is excactly 3.1 miles! Sometimes when you do a small-town run, they're close but not quite. Not so for Dawson's Run! Getting the distance correct meant they have to take the course around some silly around-the-block loops here and there, which can get confusing for some if they don't follow the arrows. I spotted a few people going the wrong direction- I met one of our family friends coming towards me and he said he had gotten confused about which way to go!  A few people later told me, too, that they were surprised at their quick times and that the race felt shorter than normal to them. In discussing the course, it turned out they missed the loop-de-loop altogether and ended up doing 2.7 instead of 3.1! No worries, though, as this event is just about getting outside and moving in memory of someone special. The course is overall very flat and fast, with mixed surface of in-town pavement and gravel and some dirt road through farm fields.

Again this year I tried to run the race with Harvey. (This meant that my hands were tied up with his leash, so I left my camera in the car... thus, not many photos in this post!) Harvey used to love running races with me but something switched for him in about the past year. He's not in love with the idea anymore. When the race began, I had to do a little bit of bribery with some string cheese to get him started. Once we got going, he did pretty good overall. After about a mile into the race when the crowd had started to thin out, Harvey showed his competitive nature. Overall, he and I kept a pretty even pace, but once we'd start getting close to someone ahead of us, Harvey would speed up and pull ahead on the leash to pass, and I'd stay with him. About as soon as we'd pass someone, he'd level pace back off again. Darn dog just has to be first! (**Harvey was the First Place Dog again this year, by virtue of being the only dog in the competition. He's not too proud to claim the victory, however! To read more about what Harvey loves, check out this post he wrote about what he's thankful for: http://www.prairieponderingsmt.blogspot.com/2015/06/thankful-thursday-vizsla-perspective.html)

For some reason, even with the flat and fast course I'd run before and was used to, the run felt really difficult to me. I really felt like I was laboring throughout the entire 5K. Maybe it's because Harvey and I had a slow start and felt like we had to surge in the first mile to get ahead, or maybe it was the heat and sun, or maybe because my legs were still tired from the previous weeks' Governor's Cup race. Who knows. I'm still pretty happy with my time of 27:06 (timed with my trusty Timex Ironman watch). I'm only about thirty seconds away from my 5K PR and feeling really good about being able to beat my time sometime this summer or fall. Jeff said he felt like he was struggling a bit during the race, too, but he still finished right around his recent PR, with a time of 30:13. Not too shabby!

After the race we stuck around Joplin for quite a while. The race is held on the same day as Joplin's annual Art in the Park and Car Show event, so there were tons of people in town for that. We spent the rest of the morning checking out artist booths, catching up with friends, and snagging a delicious home-cooked barbecue lunch.

The weather was PERFECT on race day, too. If anything, slightly warm to run in, but overall very nice. It was about 70 or a little warmer outside, with clear, sunny skies, and NO WIND! Much better than last year when it was about 45, windy and rainy. The warm weather really brought the crowds out to run and walk and to the rest of the festivities in Joplin.

One other thing that's always great about Dawson's Run is the race tshirts. They are always a plain cotton or cotton blend t-shirt, my fave!, and always feature a really fun graphic. Here's a photo of this year's tshirt design:

Everyone has a smile on their face and a big heart on the day of Dawson's Run. The positive energy is always astounding. To me, participating in Dawson's Run, even just being there at all, feels like a celebration. It might seem odd to be celebratory at an event to honor a kid who is no longer with us, but I think it's good, and maybe even healing, for people to come together to celebrate a life and celebrate community, family, and friendship. That's what this race is all about. It's not about worrying what your time was, or how cool the tshirt is (although they're always pretty cool!), it's about people coming together to celebrate life. Special thanks to everyone who helps put on the race. It's definitely a tradition in my family! Already can't wait for next year!

Governor's Cup Race Recap

It has been a whirlwind of a weekend and it's not even over yet! One of the biggest highlights of the weekend and the summer so far for Jeff and me was competing in the Governor's Cup races in Helena yesterday morning. It's only been about 36 hours since we ran, so the entire experience is still completely fresh in my mind. Perfect time to write and share a race recap!

Running toward the Montana Capital Building in Governor's Cup 2105.
(The camera was crooked--the building is straight!)

About Governor's Cup
The Governor's Cup race event is considered to be one of the premiere running events in Montana, and it has been going since 1974, so it's probably also one of the longest-running running events. There are many race distances to choose from: 5K, 10K, Half Marathon, Marathon, and Kids Run, so there is something for everyone. This year they had something like 3200 people participating, which is really big for Montana. (I'm looking forward to the day I can describe a running event in Montana as just being "really big" and not needing to add "for Montana." Someday!) The Marathon is a Boston Qualifier and attracts some really great competition, as do the other race distances. All distances finish in downtown Helena on Last Chance Gulch, with the 5K and 10K routes being run right around downtown. The Marathon begins in Marysville, MT and the Half begins half way to Helena from Marysville. The Governor's Cup website is excellent, so if you're looking for more information, definitely check that out.

Packet Pickup/Expo
Jeff and I got to town mid-afternoon on Friday. We stayed at the Best Western Great Northern Hotel which was very nice and within walking distance of the race events. After checking in, we did just that and walked to the Packet Pickup and Expo held at the Holiday Inn on Last Chance Gulch. Packet Pickup was very well organized and efficiently run. It took no time for us to retrieve our packets. Not a lot of swag in the packets- mostly coupons for Helena-area business. Nice race t-shirts, though. A cotton-poly blend in a beautiful blue for 5K and 10K participants. The Full and Half Marathoners received something that was more technical. I'd rather have this style, anyway. :)

5K/10K t-shirt style. Women's has a v-neck. Mens is crew. Featuring the Governor's Cup logo. 

Truth be told, I expected there to be more booths at the Expo than there were. Also, some of the people had already packed up by the time we got there (including the Team Beef booth!), which was around 4:30 (Expo went until 6). But we did scoop the loop and visit with the people who were still there. I spent the most time at the Sole Sisters booth because the lady was really nice and knowledgeable about her product, and she carried a lot of Oiselle, which you all know I'm obsessed with. I bought some arm-warmers from her to wear the next morning for the race. Jeff also bought a nice Brooks hat to wear for the race at one of the other booths.

Run The Edge
This year, the organizers of Governor's Cup arranged for a motivational speaker presentation on Friday evening: Tim Catalano and Adam Goucher of Run The Edge. I wasn't familiar with Tim Catalano prior to the evening, but I did know who Adam Goucher was, primarily because, again, I'm obsessed with Oiselle and his wife Kara Goucher is one of their Elite Sponsored Athletes. Adam and Tim are both excellent runners in their own right and were also very good speakers. They were funny, I really learned a lot from their talk, and they definitely motivated me. Jeff agreed that he liked them, too.

Tim Catalano (left) and Adam Goucher (right) of Run The Edge.

Tim Catalano and Adam Goucher presenting some points from their website and book, Run The Edge.

The main theme was that many of the lessons and best practices that help us to be better runners also help us to better our lives and make our lives and our running extraordinary. I couldn't agree more with this philosophy and I got a lot of takeaways from their talk that I can use myself and in coaching Track. I could do an entire blog post about just the ninety minute presentation they gave. I plan to order their book and follow their website, so I'm sure you all will hear more about Run The Edge in the future! If you ever get a chance to see these guys speak, don't miss it!

Pre-Race
I'll be writing about the 10K primarily because that's the distance I ran. The 10K race started at 7:00 a.m. on Saturday morning, a few blocks off Last Chance Gulch in downtown Helena. I know that in order to avoid digestion issues while running, I need about two hours between when I eat and when I run, so I woke up at 5:00 and had a PB and honey on whole wheat sandwich, some water, and coffee for breakfast. I took my time eating and getting ready (but I did have my outfit laid out the night before) before heading out.

Race Day Outfit: Teem Beef jersey, Oiselle Embossed Roga Shorts, Oiselle Chevrona Verazzano Bra, Oiselle Herringbone Arm-warmers (purchased at the expo), Asics shoes, Fits socks, and Athleta headband.

Our hotel was .7 mile from the start line, so I jogged over for a warmup. I was really grateful for my new arm warmers because it was about 50 degrees outside at that time and slightly breezy. My over-exuberance for making sure I have "enough time" before a race got the better of me for this one and I was just about the first person to arrive, at about 6:15. Plenty of time to get in some more warm up and hit the outhouse before the race.

Heather Lieberg
As I was coming back toward the starting area from another of my warm up jogs, I noticed someone in a Oiselle sweatshirt. I didn't need a second glace to see that it was Heather Lieberg, an elite runner who is also sponsored by Oiselle! The Helena newspaper did this really nice write-up on Heather last fall that I highly suggest you read: No Slowing Her Down. The article details Heather's rise to elite-level running. Heather ran the LA Marathon earlier this spring where she placed fifth and qualified for the Olympic Trials. She is the course record-holder in both the Full and Half Marathon distances and this year would be competing in the 10K. I've been following Heather for several months and find her to be incredibly inspirational, so I walked over and introduced myself. She was so friendly and very gracious, even though I felt a bit awkward sort of fan-girling up to her. She also agreed to take a photo with me, which I thought was really nice. Heather, if you somehow ever stumble upon this blog and read this, just know that I think it was really cool that you took a moment out of your pre-race routine to say hi to a fan. It means a lot to me. :)

Me with Heather Lieberg, who runs for Oiselle.

The Race
Soon enough it was time to begin the race. Tim Catalano and Adam Goucher were there again for a few more words of wisdom prior to the gun, and then we were off! I clicked on my watch to get my splits as I crossed the magic-carpet (the race was chip-timed) and away we went.

We started going downhill, but then turned and went right back uphill, right toward the Helena Cathedral:

Helena Cathedral graced the opening vistas of the 5K and 10K races at the Governor's Cup.

The course continued around downtown, and included a lot of uphill and downhill, but nothing too steep or severe at this point. I had heard there was a monster hill around mile four, so I was trying to be a bit strategic with my start. I went out pretty good and my first mile split was 8:20, which I was happy with, but then I made the decision to slow down my pace just a bit so I'd have something for the big hill later. 

The Montana Capital Building. This was actually the first time I've ever seen this building.

I focused a lot on my breathing pattern during this entire race as I've been trying to work on breath-based training in my workouts, too. In miles two and three my pace was a little slower and I used a 3-3 or a 2-3 breathing pattern, trying to save a little energy for later. I missed the mile-markers in there, so I missed marking my splits (an argument for a Garmin or Soleus GPS running watch), but I think I was about a minute slower than my opening mile for both mile two and three--somewhere around 9:15-9:20.

Continuing along in Mile 3 of Governor's Cup 10K. 

Not long after the above-photo, we turned back toward downtown and up the dreaded Broadway Hill. I was a little glad I hadn't gone out too hard because this hill really seemed like it "just wouldn't die," to quote a friend of mine who had run this course in a previous year. He wasn't wrong in his assessment. It really felt like it went on forever.  I thanked myself for having done some hill workouts in my training and told myself I was strong enough to handle it.

Then, somehow, we were turning back toward downtown, running on shaded streets, and doing what seemed like a lot of downhill! Score! I knew we were nearing the end of the race. I was really trying to stride out and let loose a bit on the downhill sections at this point. I had looked at my watch and knew that my goal time, 54:01, which is my 10K PR time, would be difficult to make, but I had to try.

Coming back toward downtown in Governor's Cup 10K.
That orange-tank-top lady was back and forth with me the entire race. 

 Finally, the course turned left and we were heading up Last Chance Gulch toward the finish line. Only problem was... we were going UP Last Chance Gulch. I had prepared for the long hill earlier in the race, but to end on nearly half a mile of uphill was brutal. I looked at my watch and saw my goal time come and go and I still had a little more than 100 meters left in the race. I was disappointed, but wanted to finish strong. I scanned the crowd for Jeff and saw him toward the finish line, which was really helpful and motivating to me. I tried to give it everything I had for the finish and after what felt like the longest .3 miles ever, finally crossed the line. I finished with a time of 54:54.24.

Post Race
After crossing the finish line, they had water cups, orange slices and bananas. Jeff and I found a shady spot in the park-like area surrounding the finish, caught up with a few friends who had also done the race, and watched Full and Half Marathoners finish. We saw another friend from the HiLine finish her Half and congratulated her. We also saw the first place Marathoner finish, which was really cool. He didn't even look or act tired. Pretty impressive. I also saw Heather Lieberg being interviewed by a local news station.

Heather Lieberg, winner of the 10K, is interviewed by local news after completing Governor's Cup.

Speaking of Heather again, she finished with a time of 35:23.74. She won the 10K overall, besting second place (a man) by ten seconds, and the second place female by about three minutes. Pretty much domination. Amazing!  So yeah, if I drop twenty minutes or so off my time, I can be in the same category as her... ;)  Even though I didn't get my goal time of making a PR, I'm still overall happy with my race. I was within a minute on a challenging course.  

5K Race

Soon enough it was time for Jeff to head up to the start line of the 5K. I walked back up there with him and watched the start. Governor Bullock was the motivational guest speaker for the 5K. He had actually run the Half Marathon earlier in the morning and got a pretty good time, and then, after a brief speech, ran the 5K as well with his kids. I think it's fair to say we probably have the fittest Governor in the nation. He also ran Boston Marathon earlier this spring. Pretty cool. 

Governor Bullock on the stage with gray shirt, blue hat, green race bib, after giving a pre-5K race pep talk. 

I cheered Jeff on for his start, then walked back down to the finish line area to cheer him in as he crossed the line. He was there right within the time frame he told me he thought he should be and actually finished with a really great time-- Jeff crushed his previous PR by about a minute and a half! He ended up with 30:06, and though he is excited for his PR, he's also really annoyed at that extra six seconds! Runners woes, people! 

Post race for me, pre race for Jeff, in the finish line area. 

 All in all, it was a really great race experience that was definitely worth driving down for. We had a really great time and left feeling rejuvenated for running, which is exactly what you want from a race. This is why we run. Now we both have something to continue to shoot for! Governor's Cup 2015 was a success and we can't wait to keep racing! Next up: This coming Saturday we'll be running in Dawson's Run in Joplin, MT. I'm really excited to see where my 5K time is right now. Looking forward to Saturday!

Family 5K!

For the third time this year, our family is participating in Shape Up Montana. Each week with SUM, there is a new Weekly Challenge that either focuses on improving your eating habits, mental calmness or fortitude, or physical fitness. This past week, the Weekly Challenge was to participate in the SUM Virtual 5K. We were to print off our race bibs from the SUM website, and just cover the distance at some point during the week by walking, jogging, or running. Since four of our family member teammates live close to one another, we decided to do it together as if we were actually holding a 5K. My friend Stephanie decided to join us, too, so that brought the participants of our 5K up to a total of five people- me, Jeff, Tom, Carol, and Stephanie! Yay!

Group photo before the run.
Not pictured: Stephanie and Harvey.

Even though it was a casual family event, I wanted to run it as if I were racing. It's really a challenge for me to participate in races this time of year, mostly due to being busy with track season. Many races are on Saturdays but so are track meets. I do have one race potentially on my docket for late in April in Kalispell, and another late in May near Ulm, MT, but I still wanted to get a benchmark time to see where I'm at. I've been sort of maintaining fitness over the winter months, and I really wanted to just see where I'm at, so I tried to run it hard.

Our route was an out-and-back from Tom and Carol's house. Around here, roads and fields are easy gauges of distance, so we knew exactly where a mile and a half from the house was for our turnaround spot, then we just added an extra 100 meters or so at the end to make it 3.1 miles. The route was pretty flat with kind of a low-grade gradual hump in the middle of the first mile and last mile.

Even though this was just for fun, I still wanted to run hard and this "race" did have some challenges.

It was difficult to try to race with only four other participants. Part of what keeps me motivated to challenge myself in a race is picking off people ahead of me one by one and "reeling them in." That was a challenge with so few people in this event.

Another challenge was the course itself. Yes, we knew the exact distances and where we were at all times, but the fact that it was out and back and really flat meant you could see every other point of the course from just about anywhere on the course. It felt like the turnaround was never getting any closer, even though I could see it from pretty much the start line. Same thing with the finish. I felt like I had to be really mentally tough.

Lastly, the weather was extremely windy and it was also the warmest day we had so far this spring. The wind was a headwind the whole first half of the race and really tough to buck. I just kept reminding myself that I'd be flying when I turned around! I was faster in the second half, but then I noticed the heat more, which was also unpleasant. Again, mentally challenging!

Despite all of the mental challenges of this race, I still ran a time of 27:01 over 3.1 miles. For me, this is about 30 seconds off of my "new" PR. I ran a 5K in about 24:30 in college but then got away from running for several years; my PR for more recent years is 26:32. I feel really good about my time. The conditions were not great and this was the first "race" of the season for me, so to be only about 30 seconds off my PR is pretty good to me. I'll take it!

Everyone seemed to enjoy getting outside and being active, even if it was windy. Tom and Carol both walked the course and Jeff and Stephanie ran it. This was actually Stephanie's first 5K in which she ran the majority of the race. I'm glad we could make it a positive experience for her! Oh, and Harvey and Abby (dogs) participated as well. Harvey was really confused when we all ended up going at different paces. He also waited by the turnaround to make sure everyone turned around and headed back toward home. He was NOT leaving anyone behind!

Not pictured: Stephanie, Harvey, Abby.

Most of all, I just loved that this was a little event we could do together as a family. I'd love it if we can make it bigger and have more people or more of our family members present at the very least. I do have a wild hair of an idea to host a bigger 5K event out here called 5k on the Farm and have been tossing the possibility around with Jeff and the fam around here. The concept in my mind is that people would come out to our farm and participate in the 5K (and we'd also likely have a one mile fun run for kids), then people can stick around for a grilled hamburger and tour the farm. I believe that fitness and farming can go together and this is an event that can solidify that idea.

Everyone is excited about the idea, so now I just need to put my organizational hat on and see about getting it done! One of the biggest obstacles I see is simply getting people to come out to our very remote farm. We live about 30 minute's drive from the nearest (teeny tiny) town. If you heard of an event like this in your area, would you be willing to drive out and participate? If you live near here, would you want to do it? What do you think about the 5k on the Farm concept?

Lastly, as a member of Team Beef Montana, I have to share this article from Runners World on the topic of Healthy Meets for Runners. That's right- BEEF is right on top of the list as a healthy, lean protein source to help fuel your race and recovery!

Image by Dick Patrick of www.runenrsworld.com.