Run Jozi and Spar Ladies...

After the last We Run Jozi event - which I loved - I swore that I'd be one of the first to enter the next one - if Nike did one. So when I heard that a second race had been planned, I sat - with the masses - staring at my computer, waiting for entries to open....

Nike had opened this race to 20 000 people!!! Only 10 000 people had run the last one. It was going to be epic! The day before the race I was working at the FNB stadium at the rugby. I spent hours running between the suites I was looking after - clocking up a good few k's already! So I was knackered when I got home, but when I woke up the next morning, nothing could deter me. I was super-excited to get into my Nike paraphernalia and my running shoes, and head off to the start. Standing in the streets of Sandton with thousands of other runners, music blaring, helicopter doing daredevil low-flying treetop stunts over the crowd - one could reach into the air and grab at the excitement...

One very romantic/silly (depending on your view of marriage) man had proposed to his babe at the start, which was very sweet, but I had eaten my banana and scooped up my peanut butter and was anxious for the race to start...

I loved being part of this race, part of the vibe and the excitement and the story and the history - and I was given a really cool medal at the end, but I can honestly say that out of the four 10k races I have done, this has been my least favourite - the 9am start, black t-shirts (awesome shirts though), too many people running through the skinny streets of Alex - through stinky sewerage, having to dodge the walkers as well the pedestrians casually crossing the road - it turned into more of a walk than a run. I have a friend who also did the race, she started upfront and had a completely different experience - so I know it was a phenomenal race, I just didn't feel it. Although when I look back at the pics and see the hills we climbed, I'm pretty impressed. I think that for Nike, it has become more about the exposure and the campaign than about the runners - but it doesn't mean I won't do it again. Next time race entries open, I'll be sitting with the masses, staring at my computer, waiting...even if it's just for the t-shirt, and to say "I did it!".

Not getting anywhere fast at this stage...!

 

 

 

 A week after the Jozi race was the Spar Ladies 10km - the Spar Ladies 5km was the first race I ever participated in, and I've run it the past two years. This year I decided to put on my big girl panties and run the 10km. With an 8am start and rainy weather, it was completely different to Jozi. I managed to squeeze into a spot relatively near to the front of the pack, so when the gun went off it wasn't long before I was able to weave my way through the walkers and onto some open road - by the time I hit Republic Rd, I had space around me, my music pumping and a smile on my face. Something happened during this race though - when two older gals, who had been with me at the start, suddenly caught up with me, a little voice in my head said, "Hey chickie, this is a race, you know you can do 10km so let's make it count!". The friend I refer to earlier in this post, did the Jozi in 69 minutes - she started running after me and although she gets more time to run than I do, it bites my butt that her PB is faster then mine and so that suddenly became my personal challenge! And off I went...

A super hilly race - I tried to keep going as best I could on the uphills and pumped it on the downhills - focusing on my music and my most valued supporters who were waiting patiently at the end to cheer me over the line. As I ran onto the field at Old Parktonians, and towards the finish, I heard those peeps proudly and excitedly calling out my name. I ran over the finish, yanked my BB out of its sleeve - 61 minutes!! I was over the moon! Loved this race!