Frederick Running Festival Twilight 5K and Race Expo Recap

On Saturday May 3 we ran the Twilight 5k which was part of the Frederick Running Festival. Running the 5k Saturday night and the half marathon Sunday morning is called the Frederick Nutjob Challenge. The race started at 6 pm and there was a small expo from 10-5 at the fairgrounds that day where you could get your shirt and bib.

We arrived at the expo at around 4:00 and easily found where we needed to go. Everything was very organized and well marked. We picked up our bibs in one building and then went into a different building for our shirts and the expo. The expo was small, but had a variety of vendors (headbands, running gear, skirts, chiropractor, official merch etc.). The shirts we got are awesome! The 5k shirts are short sleeved and the half marathon shirts are long sleeved.

It was 4:30 pm by the time we were back at the car to put away our goodies. We sat in the car with all the doors open for the next hour and 15 minutes waiting for race time to arrive. We then headed back over to the fairgrounds where the race would start on the horse track. The first 1/4 mile was on the track and man were my legs hating it! As soon as we hit the pavement my legs felt so much better. 

Our plan was to stick together and try to get my Mom to PR (29:24 or faster). That didn't quite work out. Cameron and my Mom pushed it a little more than I had planned so I hung back and just took it easy at a little faster than 10 min/mile pace. By mile 2.5 I was feeling good and picked it up a little. I ended up catching my Mom and Cameron. I stuck with my faster pace hoping it would push Mom to stick with me, but she just wasn't feeling it that day. At the end she said there was no point in the race where she felt good. 

The course was an out and back run that started and ended on the horse track. It was actually quite hilly. Little did I know that the most brutal hill in the race would come back to haunt me during mile 12 the next day...

I was surprised at how many runDisney fans I saw at this race! I saw Goofy shoes, Goofy challenge shirts, a Disneyland half shirt, a Dopey challenge shirt, and a Disney World half shirt. 

Post-race they had plenty of snacks and drinks to go around. We headed straight for the car, stretched and headed to Bonefish Grill. Man were we starving! By the time we got home and showered it was after 10 pm. We had an early wake-up call of 4:55 am the next day!

Check back tomorrow for my half marathon recap.

That's all for now!