First Race of 2011: Gate River Run 15k

After nursing an uncooperative achilles for much of January and half of February and missing out on Cross-Country and the Half Marathon Championships, I finally (FINALLY!) laced up my fast shoes for the 15k National Championships last Saturday.  I did not feel terribly prepared, as I had a mere 2 weeks of actual workouts under my belt, but I had to trust that the countless hours spent aqua-jogging in circles around the Manitou pool were worth it (I became a true regular in the pool, just ask me how many beams there are in the ceiling, the names and stories of all of the lifeguards, or how many tiles there are peeking above the waterline). 

It felt great to race again and I wound up finishing top 20 with a time of 53:35 (5:45/mile pace).