{"id":306,"date":"2018-08-11T20:27:04","date_gmt":"2018-08-12T00:27:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.salticid.com\/marathon\/?p=306"},"modified":"2018-10-08T19:34:15","modified_gmt":"2018-10-08T23:34:15","slug":"bridge-of-flowers-classic-5-mile-race-report-8-11-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.salticid.com\/marathon\/2018\/08\/bridge-of-flowers-classic-5-mile-race-report-8-11-2018\/","title":{"rendered":"Bridge of Flowers Classic 5 mile race report"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’m very behind on my blogging. I used to joke that every post should end “This could be the last post ever!” (in contrast to the usual impulse to insist that now<\/em> one is going to post faithfully etc…) I made notes soon after the race but may have forgotten some details. (publish date to match the race date of 8\/11, but actually posted on 8\/31\/2018)<\/em><\/p>\n

The Bridge of Flowers Road Race<\/a> is one of my regular favorites, but this year, the 40th, they switched from a 10K to a 5 mile distance in order to eliminate the stretch of Route 112 that couldn’t be closed to traffic. That worked out perfectly for me since this fell in my 3\/5\/3\/10 week, so I did the two short runs in a row and skipped speedwork as a bit of a taper. As the announcer pointed out, everyone set a course record this year!<\/p>\n

Results<\/strong>: Time: 54:50, 11:00 pace, 20th in age division (women 50-54), average HR 160. That’s a better pace than last year (11:12) and my age-graded results moved from 50.64% to 51.83%, whoo-hoo—from almost perfectly average to just a hair above average, go me I guess.<\/p>\n

I really need to get there earlier, and I wish they gave more guidance on that in the informational email. I aimed for getting there between 8 and 8:15 for a 9am start, but the 3K starts at 8:15 and I missed the chance to turn onto Mechanic Street, where parking\/registration is, before the runners came through. Once they start flowing drivers have to wait, which makes sense, so last year I parked further away, but this year I was stuck. Get there by 8! By the time I got to the school to get my bib, the shirts had already been moved to the finish line, but there were no crowds at least. I was a little rushed but was able to use a proper indoor restroom and stroll across the Bridge of Flowers to the start on the Iron Bridge.<\/p>\n

I knew my friend Carol would be there and described what I’d be wearing so she’d be able to spot me—right at the start I heard her yell to me and went over for a high-five. From previous years there were little things I’d been looking forward to or had forgotten and recognized when they happened, and others that I missed. I now run with my phone in my hand to hear the Runkeeper signals, and that allows me to stop and take pictures—and now I know that I have to stop, because the ones I tried on the fly didn’t come out. I will definitely want to take pictures at the marathon, and it’s totally worth sacrificing the little bit of time. So I have the bagpipe player who stands at the turn onto Water Street, but not the other shots I tried to get: the beautiful colored slate roofs in downtown Shelburne Falls and the sign at the top of Crittenden Hill. Missing this year: the Professor World one-man band, the vuvuzela players, the guy on a drumkit. Still there: the amazing volunteer who shouts “This is your hill! Own it!,” the house where “Chariots of Fire” plays on an endless loop (I’m glad I don’t live next door).<\/p>\n

I was very proud of running Crittenden Hill last year<\/a>\u00a0and planned on doing it again. Thinking about it had the Kate Bush song “Running Up That Hill” playing in my head:<\/p>\n