This race has a gun time of 8:30pm (hence "Twilighter") and at that point the sun is usually starting to set, but this year it was pretty dark because it rained off and on until just before gun time.
Before the race I grabbed my packet then some dinner at Sweetgreen (first time ever eating there and it was awesome! Definitely recommend the harvest bowl, minus the wild rice.) Then since I had more time I looked around and took pictures of the decorations--everything was lit up and looked great!
I loved how despite the gloomy rain everything was so colorful and bright.
There were also a few vendors that I said hello to and got to test some of their products. I also took the opportunity to avoid the long line and get my glow in the dark bracelet that would allow me to get my free post-race beer!
Then it came time to meet up with my fellow birds for some pictures (as always) just before gun time.
As we walked towards the corral (self-seeded so you had to use your judgement as far as placement) the leader of our chapter of the Volee, Courtney, asked me "What do you want your PR to be?" I apprehensively said "A sub-30 5k?" and then she said "Okay, let's do it!" and from the moment the gun went off, she pushed me to that along with a couple other volee team members helping me keep the pace. My splits were awesome--10:07, 9:52 and 10:26. I really pushed hard despite the weather (it was super humid and slightly cool but not by much.) And I had brought a handheld water bottle so we skipped the water stops. Throughout the whole race Courtney pushed me to my limits. Normally I do run/walk intervals and she wouldn't let me walk, but I just kept reminding myself "it'll be over soon" as Courtney reminded me that "5ks suck" and "You'll hate me now but a few minutes afterwards you'll like me again." And you know what?
She was right.
I hated her for that whole 32:07.
Once I got a cold towel, more water and the nausea subsided, I didn't hate her anymore and really appreciated that she pushed me. It totally caught me off guard, but it was still a PR for the course! The first time I ran the race, I ran it in 35:25 with an average pace of 11:02. This second time? I finished in 32:07 with an average pace of 10:06. I couldn't believe my watch when I saw it. An average pace of 10:06? It gave me hope that it's possible that one of these days I can actually be one of those people who sees a sub-10 minute mile for an average pace.
Besides that, I really liked the race. It's nice and flat through Crystal City and the decorations Pacers puts up in the start and finish area are really fun. Post-race, you get the usual fare--banana, a bag of pretzels, and you get a free beer. They also had free pretzels from the Pretzel Bakery and it was basically perfect with my beer. Race day packet pickup was also super easy since they had several volunteers working and they use a dynamic bib numbering system which means you get your bib number in order of pickup. (So if you get your bib early, you get a smaller number. Later pick up means a larger number.) They also had plenty of premiums, which in this case was a technical tank top!
If you enjoy summer running, I definitely recommend this race! However if you're not a fan of the heat, I'd recommend sitting this one out. The race is lots of fun and the course is pretty flat, but the heat adds an extra element of difficulty. Definitely not PR weather, but definitely a good training run!
