This was a great race season for me, despite my disappointing DE marathon. I did a lot of smaller races this season, and what I like is the diversity of the distances I covered. This season, I ran every distance between 5K and a full marathon. I will post a few highlights now.

4M: RunBUCKS Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup (Churchville, PA- 3/6/22)

I had been really looking forward to finally running this local gem because a) I love soup, and the race swag is a mug, b) it’s a weird distance, and c) it has always sold out before I get to register. They also had moved the course from the D & R canal to Churchville, which didn’t affect me in the least since I’d never run the course.

The weather this day (early March) was a little weird because the forecast called for temps in the 60s-70s that day. It was significantly chillier with menacing storms on the horizon, so I downgraded from a tank to a longer sleeved top. That was definitely a mistake because the storm clouds cleared and the temp rose several degrees as we started. I had also gotten in late the night before, so I hadn’t had a hell of a lot of sleep. My goal (based on 5K paces) was to run it in flat 8 minute miles, and I think I was able to do it in almost exactly that pace (8:02). I finished 5/30 in my age group, and I was super thrilled!

Half Marathon: Philly Love Run (Philadelphia, PA- 3/27/22)

This half was part of my training for the DE full, so I didn’t intend to fully expend the energy that I did on the Philly Half in November. The weather for this half was a lot more temperate than the Philly Half. This was my second Love Run (first in 2019), and I had run five miles the day before this race. They changed the last mile or so of the course because of construction, so mile 11-12 were very hilly, but the course didn’t end at its usually straight uphill going towards the art museum. The Covid fencing that had been a nightmare at the Philly Half was down, which was helpful for meeting up with everyone at the end.

I did really well on this course despite the extra mileage and elevation- it was a half marathon PR for me at about 1:55 and change.

Full Marathon: DE Running Festival (Wilmington, DE- 4/24/22)

See this link for the special FULL report of my first official marathon!

10M: Broad Street Run (Philadelphia, PA- 5/1/22)

I was extremely nervous running this one week after such a disappointing marathon. This was my third BSR, but as I hadn’t run it since 2019, I knew I’d easily do better than that last time. Still, the BSR has always been a fun- but anxiety-inducing race for me because of the actual logistics of a 30K- participant race. Getting up ridiculously early, getting my digestive system going, getting to the stadium lot, parking, taking the Broad Street Line, using the porta potties, gear checking, and then standing in the coral forever while everyone else in front of you starts.

We got extremely lucky. The temperature was in the 50s-60s and clear. I decided to have an indica tincture the night before, so I was well- rested. We left around 6am and decided to drive in, so I wasn’t up at the ass crack of 3:30am this year. The drive to Citizen’s Bank Park was really smooth, the parking was free and easy, and the trains ran smoothly. Gear check was a little backed up but we had plenty of time to check gear and use the bathrooms.

The race itself felt wonderful. The only issue I had was headphone connectivity problems, just due to the sheer amount of people running. My Garmin was accurate in Center City for the first time during any Philly race. They had Nuun at a few rest stops so I didn’t even bother to bring my own. I even saved a burst of energy for the last push at the end (which was actually at the sports complex, which was a nice change from having all the runners walk the mile back to the train station). I was able to both easily find people at the end of the race, and use my cell phone immediately after- another new experience in a Philly race! I was happy with my time- I had a hard goal of 1:25 (8:30mm), and a softer goal of 1:30 (9:00), but I hit it right between at about an 8:45mm. It was a solid BSR PR, and probably a 10M PR for me, too.

10K: RunBUCKS Mother’s Day Perfect 10 (Washington Crossing, PA-5/8/22)

This race had two options, a 10M and a 10K, and as it was directly following my full marathon and Broad Street, I was happy to choose the 10K. I was thrilled to do as well as I did. The weather was in the 40s and dry, so it was definitely ideal race conditions for me. This race felt really good for the most part until the last mile on concrete, probably because I watched the guy behind me cheat by making a wrong turn and cut me off and it bothered me, haha. I was excited to both PR and place second in my age group, -and it was my first medal in a 10K!

5K: Medford Lakes Memorial Day (5/30/22)

This race was definitely one of the rougher ones due to the humidity. I actually thought by my third mile, I’d be lucky to finish sub-27, but I surprised myself with a 25:12. I even ended up with a 3rd place age group award on a technicality because the first place girl ended up in the overall placements. It was a lot of fun seeing some local faces and RWB had a solid turnout.

8K: Scott Coffee (Moorestown, NJ- 6/4/22)

This is my second SC race, I ran it in 2017- and virtually in 2020. I’ve loved attending the local South Jersey and SEPA races because they’ve become ‘reunion’ races, and after Covid- that’s been so refreshing! This race was definitely hotter than I thought it’d be, and I wanted to conserve a little energy for our BRC beer run, so I decided NOT to run this race at my initial goal pace (8:15s), and settled for about an 8:30 minute mile. I finished 9/37 (?) in my age group which I was happy about because it was a larger, more competitive race.