Furry 5k 2026

As expected, race day dawned hot, cloudless, and sunny as hell. I had resolved to keep my expectations low, and after my half-mile walk to Seward Park from where I managed to find a parking spot, I had resolved not to bother with a warmup mile. I was plenty warm.

I had expected this race to be on the small side, but Seward was bustling when I arrived at 10:45. I stashed my bag at the gear check truck and met up with the other runners from work. We commiserated about the heat, got some pictures, used the bathroom, and lined up at the start.

Lots of people were running with dogs; I didn't think they'd be very competitive, and I didn't want to be caught in the middle of the pack, dodging leashes. As is the case with charity 5ks, there were a number of obvious walkers too near the front of the corral, and I didn't want to waste energy getting around them. So, I opted to start pretty much on the mat, with the fast people.

This is a terrible picture but it captures the size of the crowd!

After a brief (and honestly kind of embarrassing) speech from Seattle's new mayor, we did a countdown from five and were off.

The first mile was almost entirely shaded. I felt really good. My legs seemed to enjoy running fast after months of purposefully pulling my pace back to accommodate longer runs. I could tell the heat was going to impact my breathing eventually, but for mile one I felt strong. I didn't feel I was working hard enough to earn an 8:24 pace, which is a sign that if I were to do a mile-trial anytime soon, I could maybe manage something in the high-7s these days.

The shade disappeared shortly into the second mile. I told myself I'd banked some time and could slow down. My legs kept feeling good, but sure enough the hot air in my lungs was starting to wear on me. I hung in there until mile 1.6, about halfway up the hill.

I expected the route for this race to be the one I've run many times, but backwards, so I was not ready for the turn at the top of the hill to go right rather than left. This extends the hill itself, and once I realized it, I decided to walk. I knew if I kept trying to run up the hill, I'd burn out the rest of my energy and have a terrible second half of the race. 

I took a cup of water from a volunteer and dumped it over my head. With my banked time, I still managed a 9:40 second mile. 

The third mile completed the last of the loop at the top of hill and funneled us back down toward the finish. There was no shade to be had. My lungs were burning. My legs were tired. Around mile 2.9 I did something silly and let myself walk for fifteen seconds or so, just to give myself a chance for a good final sprint across the finish line.

I think that final walk is what cost me 3rd place in my age group. I can take some solace in knowing 6th place was only 13 seconds behind me, so she's probably also pretty annoyed.

Anyway, I finished feeling pretty good. I had managed a sub-30 5k on legs that had done 8 miles just two days before. I've spent so much time running slow and long in cooler weather, I didn't know what to expect from myself today, and despite the walk breaks I was happy with my overall performance and pace. It wasn't a well-strategized race but that wasn't what this one was ever really about. It was about doing a race with my colleagues. 

But yeah, the final results in my age group are going to haunt me. I'll remember them next time I want to take the foot off the gas in the last tenth of a race.

Ali