Sometimes we let friends convince us to do things we don’t want to do. In my case, yesterday around 4pm, Theodora convinced me to sign up for NY Runs Firecracker 10k. While I thought this race would be a great way to kick off the Fourth of July holiday, I hadn’t signed up yet as I was hoping that we’d be on our way to the beach well before the race started at 9am.

But, thanks to the Weather Channel’s prediction of storms all day, we had a relaxing night in last night complete with Newsroom, delicious homemade Greek chicken and salad, along with a few glasses of wine.

I woke up today at 7am with time to foam roll and stretch my tired legs and prepare my normal breakfast of peanut butter, banana and sandwich thins. See that green “real Coconut water” in the background? Gia recommended I start drinking this the night before an outdoor run longer than 6 miles. Unfortunately, I forgot about the water until this morning so instead poured it into my running water bottle to sip during the race.I met Theodora at her place and then we hopped on the F over to Roosevelt Island, arriving with 50 minutes to spare since the subway system was working faster than normal. We killed time catching up inside the subway terminal where we were safe from the constant drizzle outside.

At 8:35 we figured it was time to head over to the start line. That’s where the issues began. Unfortunately there was no signage for the race so we didn’t know exactly where the start line was nor the restrooms. After hearing that there weren’t restrooms from other participants we headed to Starbucks where we waited in the 20 person line in hopes of having the chance to use the restroom before the race. Of course not, that’d be too easy. Instead, Theodora and I headed over to the bag check area, thinking that was the start. Nope, wrong again. We were verbally directed over to the start where we waited for 5 minutes until the start.

While the views were unique and Roosevelt Island provided a change from our regular routes, I didn’t feel terrific about the race. It was beyond humid and you could feel the clouds parting, knowing that the sun would be shining down on us at any minute. Regardless, I told Theodora my goal for the race was to negative split and keep an average of around a 9:35, starting no faster than 9:45.

Of course, instead I took Theodora up on her offer when she asked if I wanted to run with her. Why not? It’s been ages since we ran a race together since she’s all speedy these days. Little did Theodora know that going out at a 9:17 pace would leave me dead. While my friends like to tell me I’m faster than I give myself credit, what they don’t know is that I’m just starting to build up speed. Therefore, I can’t go out wicked fast, for me, and sustain it yet. This has been true in every race where I’ve tried it. So, long story short, this was a humbling race that reminded me that marathon training is here and racing season is over. I’ve set some new PR’s over the past few months and now it’s time to remind my body what it feels like to run long and slow (that’s what she said).

Would I do the Firecracker 10K again? Possibly but the group really needs to change a few things such as more water stops, earlier start time, improved signage, and more bathrooms. While it was fun to do a non NYRR race for a change, there is a reason NYRR has such a great reputation for running races.

Instead of getting down over today’s race Bo and I headed over to Brooklyn Bridge Park  to enjoy an afternoon of fresh air, sunshine, adult beverages, and gorgeous views. Our original plan of a beach day was cancelled due to the weather reports which clearly were all lies.

The one thing that was perfect was the company. We spent four hours laughing on the grass with four of our friends, including Bo’s sister Meg, and catching some wonderful sun and views of the city.

The heat started to get to us after a while since there was very little breeze and no real way to cool off. But, things were much better once we took some refuge under the trees instead of laying out in the direct sunlight.

Last, but not least, Happy Fourth of July! While each person celebrates their freedom differently we found this guy celebrating his freedom to where and do whatever he wants in Brooklyn Bridge Park today!