First things first… a big hey hey to any of you who clicked on over to Dr.TriRunner from MinnesotaTriNews!! I know there are at least a few of you, because someone stopped me yesterday around Lake Calhoun saying “hey… you’re that girl that was on…..” 
I invite you to sit down, make a drink sip some PowerDew, and stay a while! If you see me out around the lakes… down on my aero bars attempting to look fast on the bike… at Whole Foods… wherever – say hi!
And for the Twin Cities tri-kids who are regulars here but haven’t checked out Minnesota Tri News yet… climb out from under that rock and hop on it! Moving on to business…
Get Lucky 7K Race Report
From start to finish…
I’m pretty sure I signed up for the GL7K within the first 20 minutes registration was open. At only $29.80 (for those that are on top of their game…) it was a steal, especially compared to certain other possibly St. Patty’s Day related races. Extra-especially given all the sweet swag… a HOODIE? Medal? Flag? Post-race party + Free drinks? Yep.. the Irish know how to party. And clearly, so does Team Ortho, because yet again they blew away my expectations with another epic race.
Pre-Race…
… went basically as planned. The GL7K offered plenty of pre-race packet pickup hours. As an added benefit for me, it was at the local running store that I grew up with, and my still-favorite: Gear Running Store on 44th and France Ave. Not only did I get to chit-chat with the owners (one of which Paul Horan, who did very well in the 7K himself!), but I got to check out some sweet sales. Further solidifying the fact that 87% 89% of my wardrobe is indeed intended for athletics.
I also picked up a Peace Coffee Racing jersey the day before – this was my first “official” race for PCR, no pressure though 
Complete Pre-Race Preparation Instructions: Click here.
All the necessities to start the day off right
Due to said pre-race protocols, race morning ran pretty effortlessly.
- Packet: check
- Outfit: check, with a slightly warmer option in the bag, bib pinned on.
- Fuel: check! I hate bananas, but Banana Nut Cheerios are another story. Topped off with plenty of Peace Coffee and I was good to go.
- Sleep: check. One of the only people I’d share my bed with – Tylenol PM.
- Plan: CHECK! See below…
Aright.. if you read the pre-race preparations post, OR if you know me in real life, OR if you’ve been reading Dr.TriRunner for a while at all… you’d know I fall slightly more on the Type-A end of the spectrum. In that post I stated that I will either have 1 or 0 plans, but you better believe a “plan of 0″ – meaning I’m going to race for fun – is still a plan.
“To race, or not to race. That is the question.”
Only it wasn’t, because I knew I wanted to [attempt to] go fast. My last race before the GL7K was the Victory Memorial 10K/5K… in September. And then I found out I fractured my femoral neck… again… right before Twin Cities Marathon, so it was speed work no more. Given the OK to start running again on November 10th (good lord.. how many posts am I going to have titled “CLEARED!!”) but didn’t really hit specific speed work again until… oh… Monday March 15th. Yassos, to be exact, and they felt good. I wanted to see if there were any fast twitch fibers left in there, so racing was indeed the plan.
That also meant I was going to ditch the 15 miler with my group of guys… which they did before the race. You know I love my long runs, but I don’t think I would have been able to race quite the same with 15 already down for the morning.
Pacing?
Yeah, you tell me. I’ve obviously I’ve never run a timed 7K, so I wasn’t so sure. Having an internal sense of pace is something that takes a logn time to develop, and I’d like to think that in the last 7 years of racing (I don’t think an asthmatic 5 year old attempt at the 1 mile counts) I’ve at least started to crack that code. I ended up taking my 10K pace, 6:40, and my 5K pace, 6:20, and split the difference.
Given that my average pace for the 7K turned out to be 6:31, I’d say that worked pretty well. 
Funny thing is though, aside from the first mile I didn’t really check my splits on Gomer throughout the race. I know what 10K feels like, and I knew I needed to be running harder than that. No kidding – there was a time around mile 3 when I said (out loud), “C’mon Erika… HTFU.” (And that’s a shoutout to YOU my Boston Buddies!!)
ANYWAYS… there are many more words in this brief recap than I intended. Too much coffee this morning. Dirty details:
- FINSIH TIME: 28:23
- AVG. PACE: 6:31
- OVERALL PLACE (females): 3/1722
- DIVISION PLACE: 2/133
How did I feel?
Pretty damn good! Only too hot in the last mile.5. Thirsty. Ready to run the slow easy cool down to make Saturday a long run day and take Sunday off. Hip felt solid throughout – success! There were two AMAZING runners who took 1st and 2nd, Amy Lyons and Jenni Wilcox, and I’m honored to even be in their company. And that’s the 100% non-butt-kissing-truth! Mizz Lyons and I are also now in the same age group , something I realized the night before the race (!!), but not for long. Until then, looks like I gotta pick a different race get my fast feet on and step my game up!
Would I sign up for the GL7K again?
Heck. Yes. I ❤ you Team Ortho. As a matter of fact.. I already have several other 2010 Team Ortho races on the calendar!
Photo time!!
This is like a where’s waldo of race photos. Can you find me?
Some of the MN Running Wild crew
Tom & I (repping the U of MN Triathlon Team!) // Dave & I (Repping… 3rd place finishers? Hahah!)
Post race warm car felt so good!
That is one sharp & pointy medal! Love the flag. Love the hoodie. Love the medal. LOVED the race!
As always, you’ll be able to find this and all other race reports under the “RUN hard” tab on the top of the page! Catch you soon – I’m off to spin.
-E
p.s. I’m a redhead.. you know I’m sun sensitive. And that goes for my EYES too! Erica’s gonna hook me up… right?
Comment By: Alyssa
March 25th, 2010 at 6:05 pm
Awesome job lady!
I missed the sign up for the 7k, I was super bummed out. Team Ortho is my absolute favorite! Best race goodies for sure. Will you be doing any of their races June 6th?
Alyssa´s last blog ..Intro
Comment By: Onelittletrigirl
March 26th, 2010 at 4:59 am
Holy shit they are amazing stats!! 2nd AG and 3rd overall…after an injury! Woo-hoo!
Onelittletrigirl´s last blog ..Travesty…And A Little Good News!
Comment By: Dr. TriRunner
March 26th, 2010 at 7:38 am
@onelittletrigirl – thanks!! you know.. i definitely never ever thought I’d get back to this during those endless hours pool running in the diving well. reminds me i have a lot to be thankful for.
Comment By: sarah
March 26th, 2010 at 7:47 am
Hey hey! Nice runnin’! That sounds like a fun little race, and you executed it perfectly. Well done!
Sidenote: you look like a baller in the last picture, only greenish runner style. Badass.
sarah´s last blog ..In lieu of
Comment By: Dr. TriRunner
March 26th, 2010 at 7:53 am
@Sarah – Hahaha. B.A.-leprechaun-M.F. Thanks
Comment By: Chelsea
March 26th, 2010 at 9:46 am
Great job at the race! I just found your blog through Marathon Maiden’s. I just moved to Wisconsin last year, and I really admire your commitment to getting out and running during the cold Midwest winters.
Comment By: Suzie
March 26th, 2010 at 11:26 am
Cool blog and great job at your race! I have the same pair of tiny black Nike shorts you wore but they look much better on your little legs:-)
Suzie´s last blog ..No Juicer No Problem
Comment By: Tina
March 26th, 2010 at 2:08 pm
WOW! I am extremely impressed with how fast you are. Congrats on the accomplishments on that race! And I love the race start photo with your head peeking around all the people. LOL
Tina´s last blog ..Spring Is Popping!
Comment By: lizzy
March 26th, 2010 at 6:04 pm
Hey LOVE!! this was the best race re-cap I have ever read!!! wahhhh I’m lovin’ the details, I feel like I was right there next to you during the entire race! (i wish!)
hehehe…k maybe we are both dorks! I’m having LongBike Saturday and LongRun Sunday! (we r flip-flopped!!!) hehe LOVE it! i heart you chica!
…I hope your friday is going splendidly (washing/vacuuming out the car is not DORKY! I loveeee doing it too, a clean car feels soooo good!)
xoxo!
lizzy´s last blog ..it’s Official…
Comment By: Karyn
March 26th, 2010 at 6:51 pm
congrats! i LOVED reading this!! you nailed that pace and are very speedy. love the pictures. you totally have that glow about you that tells me youre having fun. and fun = good. can’t wait to see what you do in future races where youve done more speedwork! exciting
Karyn´s last blog ..Whew. TGIF yo!
Comment By: Susan
March 26th, 2010 at 9:24 pm
A race the gives out a sweatshirt?? I love it! Congrats on a great race! I don’t think I’d have any idea how to pace a 7k other than to just go for it!
Susan´s last blog ..mental status changes
Comment By: clay
March 27th, 2010 at 12:52 pm
Awesome job on the race! You can fit the garmin on your arm? Hah couldn’t help but notice that… Great job though!
clay´s last blog ..Not without Coups!
Comment By: Averie (LoveVeggiesAndYoga)
March 27th, 2010 at 10:39 pm
great race pics and great job!
Comment By: kate
March 28th, 2010 at 7:01 pm
i really love reading about this! i am so fascinated by all this business. it is soooo different than anything i’ve ever done athletically. thanks for sharing!
we must hangout soon!
kate´s last blog ..back to reality
Comment By: Amy Leger
March 29th, 2010 at 2:17 pm
Thank you for the great race report! We’re glad you had a great time.
We wanted to make sure you knew that for just a short time, registration is open for Get Lucky 2011!
Register here: http://teamortho.us/Early-Leprechaun-Special-Get-Lucky-2011.html
Registration closes at the end of this week! See details on the website!
Thanks again!
Amy
Comment By: Jamie
March 30th, 2010 at 5:16 pm
Third place?! That is sick. Congrats speedy.
Jamie´s last blog ..Trail Running Love