Holiday Hustle

This afternoon I ran another 5K race, the "Holiday Hustle," in the small town of Dexter, a few miles west of our Ann Arbor home. Like last year it was cold (about 28 degrees this time), but whereas in 2008 we ran through a picturesque light snowfall, this year we experienced a little snow on the drive to Dexter, but it was absent during the race. My training has been so spotty in recent weeks due to minor illness and injury that I didn't expect to have a good finishing time, and in that, I was accurate. Last year I broke a half-hour for the first time in a 5K, finishing in 29:29; this year I was hoping to break 32 minutes, and in fact by my unofficial timing, I crossed the line in about 31:38 (a pace of 10:11/mile). I came close to not running it, though, and then to stopping midway through and just walking. We arrived early and the race began a few minutes late, so as I waited on the cold afternoon, in the gathering twilight, I was tempted to just toss in the towel. But, as I run without my glasses, and am severely nearsighted, I knew I'd never find Michelle ... so I decided to just go and do the best I could. And I'm glad I did. It was very enjoyable, too, to run with my iPod playing Christmas music of Acoustic Eidolon, an ensemble I enjoy hugely, and whom I saw in concert in Ann Arbor a couple of weeks ago.