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.

Planning for the big 4-0

This month completely got away from me. I closed out October with a week off from work and a new car—that's right, my little mini Lola has been passed on to a friend and replaced with a VW Taos, which is still nameless for now— and entered November with the best of intentions. It was going to be the month of getting back to the gym, keeping my running on track, and choosing a birthday race. 

Pretty.

But, I immediately got sick with a stubborn cold that lasted a good two weeks, and before I knew it, most of November had passed in a haze of congestion and asthma that made all my plans disappear in a puff of aerosolized albuterol.

I haven't been sick since having covid in 2023. I forgot how annoying it is.

Fast & the Furriest 5k, 2019

When I say I went into this race undertrained, I'm not exaggerating. Since A1A, I've only run roughly one to two times a week. At first this was due to recovery. Then it was because of track season. Those few runs building up to this race were generally under 3 miles and fairly slow, although I did a few 3-milers closer to race day and sprinkled a little bit of speed work in.

That's right, I did a total of just 6 runs in the month before race day.

Basically, I mean it when I say I was thinking this race was going to be a disaster. That I'd struggle the entire time. I didn't anticipate having a good race, but I thought maybe I could have a good run.

I met Michelle and Shelagh at Hammond Stadium (the Twins spring training stadium) around 7am. The race was scheduled for 7:30, which left us plenty of time to get our packets, use the bathroom, and take a few pictures.

My plan for the race was just to keep it low-key. I wanted to run at a slow-and-steady pace, assuming I'd be able to complete the race without walking if I stuck to a 10-minute mile. My paces have been slower than that lately, so I wasn't sure I'd be able to. My usual goal of running sub-30 minutes felt like a stretch, and while of course I wanted to reach that goal, I honestly didn't think I had it in me. I also was kind of resolved not to really try.

For the first time in years, sub-30 felt like a pipe dream, and I didn't want to risk injury by pushing myself past what I was capable of with so little training.

Anyway, we lined up at the start. Shelagh had a very specific time goal based on her race last year. She also wanted to win her age group. Michelle and I started behind her, since we weren't aiming for a competitive race.

In the first half mile or so, I was running too fast and having trouble modulating my pace. When I tried too hard to slow down, my shins hurt. But eventually I settled into a pace that felt pretty good, around the 9:40s, and my first mile ended up averaging 9:15.

With some major cushion on the time now, I settled in and just tried to run steady. I didn't have to play any mind games with myself because I was so entirely goal-less, and in a way this was one of the easiest 5ks I've ever run. (Don't get me wrong - it was hot and I was working hard, but it felt mentally easy.)

Around mile 1.5, I started giving myself little pep talks. Halfway there. C'mon girl, nice and steady. This isn't so bad. It's only three miles. At some points I slowed down, and at others I really picked up the speed; I was ignoring my watch so I really just let my legs do whatever they wanted.

Bumpy.

In 5ks, I tend to hit the wall around mile 2.6, and this time was no different. I recognized the spot where I'd walked last year as I came up on it this year. But knowing I'd generally kept a slower pace, I convinced myself to just slow down my run and not walk at all. Again, the lack of pressure of a goal-free race really worked in my favor mentally.

The clock at the finish line was all zeroes when I crossed, so I wasn't sure of my exact time until I saw the printed results. My time was literally the same as last year's!

I did move up from 9th to 6th, though!

Honestly, I was surprised to see the time. I wasn't keeping a close eye on my watch; I knew from the first mile that I'd likely run better than I expected to and that I might even squeak in under 30 minutes, but I absolutely did not expect to run anything like I did last year.

2019

(Shelagh pointed out later that last year this was my first real race back and I had trained for it. Who knows how I'd have run it if I'd put in some training?!)

I found Shelagh, who had absolutely destroyed her time goal (and did it without a watch!), then waited for Michelle to finish.

After Michelle crossed, we hung out a bit until, finally, we saw them printing results and went to look. Shelagh had placed first in her AG (6th woman overall!), so we knew we had to stay for awards.

She was very embarrassed and didn't want her picture taken, so of course I had to share it on the blog.

Afterward, we went our separate ways. I felt really good. I posted a couple weeks ago on Instagram that a perk of being a "veteran" runner is that you can slack off quite a bit and still pick up where you left off fairly easily. I think this race was a good example of that; in the past, I never could have gone into a 5k so poorly trained. Now, though, my basic level of fitness seems to rest a little higher, which is nice.

That said, it's really time for the slacking to stop. I have one more week of track (including the championships) and then I can devote more time to my own running again. I can't wait. It's time!

ABK

ALSO Youth Turkey Trot 5k

It's been awhile since I've run a Turkey Trot, but I'm a sucker for family events, so when my sister floated the idea of running the ALSO Youth 5k on Thanksgiving morning, I had to say yes. The race fit in nicely with my training plan, too; I planned to go easy so my legs would still be fresh for my long run on Saturday.

Gordon drove Steph, Matt, and me to the race start around 6:15 in the morning. He wasn't running, but kindly volunteered to watch our stuff and get photos for us.

Race morning, I opted to wear the Wonder Wool shortsleeved top rather than the Watch Me Go because it was a little warmer than anticipated.

We picked up our packets and wasted 40 minutes waiting for the start by using the bathroom multiple times. This race benefits a great cause; all proceeds go to ALSO Youth, which is an organization for LGBTQIA kids ages 13-21 who are in need of a community and support. It was really nice to see 1500 participants supporting the cause in this red county in Florida.

Steph borrowed my Redemption Shorties so she'd have a pocket for her phone.

Matt opted to wear his HRC equality flag, since he was just running for fun and didn't foresee himself placing.

The downside of this race is that it's very popular and runs a pretty narrow route. It was a full 2 1/2 minutes between the starting gun and when Steph and I crossed the start line. (Matt had gone ahead of us.)

Moseying along to the start line.

For the first mile or so, Steph and I stayed together. We had to dodge in and out of a lot of walkers the entire race. That's another downside of...well, of turkey trots in general: they tend to attract race newbies and tons of young kids. In other words, there's a major lack of race etiquette on the course.

I had planned to walk the ascents of the bridge, but felt pretty good on the first one. After cresting the top, Steph overtook me and we ran the rest of the race alone.

I took my one and only walk break on the second ascent. I was just tired. Plus, the wind was now against me and my music station was boring me to death. I changed music and was running again after one minute of walking. It was all I needed to power up the rest of the bridge and through the end of the race.

With half a mile to go, I began to regret my effort. I knew the dodging-and-weaving from early in the race was going to add mileage, and I knew I had a long run on Saturday. I realized I should have set a more conservative goal, something like 33 minutes, and just taken it easy. But now I was in it and I just couldn't let up this close to the end. I kept on pushing right through the finish line.

The others found me and we rested a bit and then found our finishing times. I wasn't sure what to make of mine; considering the total distance according to my watch, the chip pace/time seemed off, but since I wasn't really hoping for a strong performance, I didn't mind much. None of us placed, so we decided to head home.

Steph's and my finishing times according to the chip.

My Garmin data. The distance tracked long, so I think my actual 5k was probably sub-30; that being said, I should have run this much easier than I did.

I'm glad we ran the turkey trot, but I do hope the organizers fix the congestion issue next year. Even just having walkers start five or ten minutes ahead of racers would be helpful! That said, it's been 9 years on this same course, so I doubt a solution is forthcoming.

The course is definitely a tough one, so it's not always easy to fit into my schedule, but I do hope to be back in future years to do this one again so I can continue supporting the cause.

*Edit: My legs held up fine and felt good on Saturday. A little tired, but not painful; I kept my pace a little easier than it has been on previous long runs and was fine!

ABK

Chattajack 2018

Chattajack has come and gone; this year was Matt's fourth consecutive time completing the 31+ mile paddle race. This year was a little different because he raced his OC1 (outrigger canoe) rather than a stand-up paddleboard. The new craft offered some new pros and some new challenges, too.

We spent all of last Thursday driving up to Chattanooga, Tennessee. One nice thing about this race is that it makes seeing Quack and Anne Marie a yearly tradition. This year we also got to meet Lucy:

This is definitely the first and may be the only time I ever feature cat videos on my blog. Enjoy.

The weather was rainy and cold, and I opted to sleep in Friday rather than attempt to run through the rain while Matt partook in a pre-race paddle clinic led by Johnny Puakea, the designer of the Puakea outrigger canoe (which Matt paddles) and one of the best paddle coaches in the world. (He's usually in Hawaii, so Matt had to take advantage of the chance to meet him and get some tips.)

Matt (green jacket) learning from the best.

Checking in and putting the finishing touches on his OC1.

The rain and cold weather had us hoping the current from the dam would be faster, but Saturday dawned with a diminished flow.

Race morning!

Surfskis and outriggers have a later start time than other paddle-craft, so we arrived at 7:30 for the safety meeting as usual, but had to wait until 8:30am for Matt to get on the water. He didn't actually start until 9am (EST).

Matt is the guy in the pink hat carrying a giant boat down the dock in this video.

Paddling to the start line.

Matt knew he'd be faster this year, as the OC1 is a faster craft than a SUP board. This meant that despite the later start, we could still anticipate a finishing time around 2pm (CT).

And they're off!

This year, I was driving my own car and I was by myself. This made catching Matt along the route much less stressful. As usual, I caught him at the 10 mile mark, Suck Creek, about 90 minutes into the race. He was in a line of OC1s that had formed a draft train.

Matt hadn't gotten to practice drafting other OC1s much because his local paddling friends don't have them, so I was pleased that he'd found a train and seemed to be doing well.

He's the second in line.

The next stop was mile 20, Raccoon Mountain. I'd missed this stop last year and was determined to get to it because it's so close to the water and a great vantage point. Despite knowing how absolutely difficult it was to find, and leaving plenty early to get there, I still nearly missed Matt at this stop.

Basically, the Sherpa guide doesn't clarify that you need to drive toward the Raccoon Mountain boat ramp. If you go toward the tourist center or pump station, you end up UP the mountain and far from the river. With rain and fog added to the mix, I was pretty turned around and lost at this point. My GPS took me off the interstate an exit early, and when I fixed it and hopped back on, I'd already lost 10 minutes. Then I made two wrong turns on the mountain itself and got all the way to the "top" before realizing I needed to find the boat ramp.

While I was panicking about missing him, Matt was chatting merrily with fellow paddlers on the course.

I was nearly in tears at the thought of missing Matt here again, but I found the boat ramp and parked within literally minutes of his passing. I was out of the car and running around in the parking lot when I saw him.

I yelled, "GO MATT GO! I GOT LOST THREE TIMES BUT I FOUND YOU THIS YEAR!"
To which he shouted back, "WHERE'S YOUR CAR?!"

I guess he could easily spot my blue mini from the water at times, and that's how he knew I was successfully spectating if he couldn't hear me shout. At Raccoon Mountain, he just saw me running around like a crazed chicken. At least I made him laugh!

At this point, he was on his own, but still seemed to be going at a good pace. Filled with relief, and knowing the next stop was easy to find and not far away, I was able to take a breather and head down to mile 24, Sullivan's landing.

Sullivan's Landing, another boat ramp well across the gorge from where the paddlers pass, is the furthest viewing point I stopped at. Still, I was able to spot Matt without binoculars (I will try to get some next year I think!) and shout across to him. (He told me later he was able to hear me and see my car.)

The "view" from Sullivan's Landing

On my way to the finish line, my GPS got all turned around again, but I made it to Hales Bar shortly after Quack. We were able to see Matt's friend Justin finish (he was on a surfski, the fastest of the paddle crafts), and his friend Murray. Finally, we saw Matt come around the corner.

As I've mentioned in past Chattajack posts, the race ends with a separately-tracked final sprint. Racers can place in the race and in the sprint. Matt came to the final buoy turn with another OC1 just ahead and a SUP racer between them. The other OC1 kept attempting to block Matt from getting around him, even trying to knock him into the floating dock.

Luckily, they had to split around the SUP'er, which gave Matt some freedom from the overzealous (and over-competitive) OC1. As usual, I ran beside him down the dock, shouting and encouraging him. (It sounds like I'm coaching him to give birth...the video below is not for the easily motion-sickened because it was filmed by accident and is ALL OVER the place.)

Matt was able to pull ahead of the other OC1 at the finish. His time was 5:20:xx.

Pure beast-mode.

He was in better shape than in some of the past years - no major blisters, no hypothermia - but his arms were cramping pretty badly. Not only had the flow dropped, but the wind had risen, and once again he battled headwinds and whitecaps for most of the race.

After getting him back to Quack's, cleaned up, fed, and rested, we headed back out for the awards ceremony. Matt didn't place this year, but he wanted to get his commemorative glass and trade survival stories with his various paddling friends. (I realized this year that Matt knows basically the entire Florida paddling community and is too popular to be married to this anti-social homebody.)

We got ice cream with Justin and his family before calling it a night.

Over all, it was a good race and a good visit to Tennessee. Next year Matt will earn the much-coveted belt buckle given to racers who have completed five consecutive years of Chattajack. After that, he says he'll take a break from this monster challenge...but who knows...there's a 10-year belt buckle out there, too.

ABK

A1A After All

Awhile back, I wrote about looking for a comeback half marathon. I was thinking about the Space Coast or Miami, but neither really excited me. My heart had been set on A1A, because (as habitual readers will know) I've run that race every year for my birthday for the last four years.

The first year, my sister surprised me at the finish line, my cheer-squad wore birthday hats, and I met Kristina.

Year two, I earned my marathon PR. Year three, I ran the half marathon with Elizabeth; it was my last race pre-diagnosis and surgery.

Year four, the A1A 5k was my first race back post-surgery, and the idea of running it for the fifth time as my first half back felt like it would be perfect closure on a tough year.

February 2018

I wrote that I was going to have to miss A1A in 2019, but I didn't share how utterly heartbroken I was over it. Elizabeth can attest to my ranting over it, and Matt can attest to the tears. I even whined to Kristina about it - she was very helpful in talking out other half marathon possibilities. The bottom line was, we had other obligations set for February 2019 that were important and impossible to miss, so I had to be a grown up and break my birthday tradition.

People kept tagging me on posts about the medals this year - A1A is known for its medals - and I would immediately publicly wallow about missing out on THE BEST MEDAL EVER.

Since then, I haven't felt like finding a half marathon. I've enjoyed running at my own pace and without a plan. I decided if no race really excited me, then I wouldn't run one. On Monday evening, I did an easy two miler and reflected on the fact that I just didn't want to push beyond two miles, and because there wasn't a plan to follow that said I had to, I didn't go farther. I felt at peace with that decision.

Then, everything changed.

I texted Matt early Tuesday afternoon to find out if I had to take February 15 off of work for our plans. He responded with quite a surprise: the plans were being rescheduled and my birthday weekend was open once more.

My reaction was very mature and sedate:

After calling Matt and having the shortest discussion ever (Him: Can you train for it in time? Me: UH YEAH Him: Okay) I booked the race immediately and told Elizabeth, who shared in my celebration. I messaged Kristina,  too. Suddenly, I was filled with longing to run a race. No, not just a race. This race. And with that longing came an immediate desire to train. To build my mileage. To have a plan.

I knew I was upset to be missing A1A, but I hadn't realized that not having a race to be excited for was really putting me in a running rut. I'm past running for medals, but the tradition and celebration of A1A means so much to me, and I am suddenly filled with anticipation and pure joy.

I am going to train for a half marathon! I am going to run my favorite race! I am going to celebrate my birthday in my favorite way!

I. Can't. Wait!

ABK

Rampage 5k 2018

Back in June, or maybe even May, my friend, colleague, and fellow Skirt ambassador Michelle floated the idea of running a race together with our other friend, colleague, and Skirt ambassador Ashley. We thought it would be fun to all run together, because even though we work together, I've only gotten to run one race with them before. (Ashley and Michelle train together frequently and are currently training to run the Chicago marathon together.)

The last time we raced together.

Anyway, I had this race in my head all summer, but I never signed up. Then, last week, I decided to bite the bullet and sign up before I chickened out. Both Michelle and Ashley signed up, too, so we were all set to meet before the race, run it, and have breakfast together after.

I had a banana, a tbsp of peanut butter, and a cup of strong black coffee about 90 minutes before the race, then made the half hour drive to the park. The race started at 7am; the weather was cool (mid-70s at the start) but the humidity was no joke (94%). Before the sun was up, though, it didn't feel too bad.

At the starting line!

I had no goals for this race. I didn't even have a "I don't want to walk" or "I want to sub-30" goal. This race was literally just to help push me mentally further into the headspace I've recently been in, where real training and weekend runs are appealing to me again.

Based on my paces lately, I was surprised to find myself running in the 8:50s early on. I was sure I wouldn't be able to hold it long, but it felt really comfortable, so I just let my legs do their thing. 

My legs continued to do their thing to mile 2, but my hair threw the first wrench in my wheel. It's at a weird length right now where I can get it into a bun and keep it there with the help of a lot of bobby pins, but it started to come down and was really distracting. I took a walk break to shove the pins back into place, but as you know...once you walk, it's hard to convince yourself to get going again. I started to realize how hot it was. By this point, the sun was fully up and I was running directly into it.

I took this photo after fixing my hair. The last mile of the race was quite pretty!

I managed to run another half mile before I decided to take another walk break. I kept it brief. I think my need for it was more mental than physical. I made the decision to run the rest of the race at a much easier and more sustainable pace, which ended up being around 9:30. I was able to finish the last sprint at a 7:52 pace.

Here's a blurry screenshot from the finish video.

I know some of you (ahem, Megan) like finishing videos, so here's the one from this race. I come into view around 10:04.

I finished in 28:57 (or 29:00 according to my chip), 8th in my age group. 

I caught some photos of Michelle and Ashley finishing, and then after waiting to check our times, we went to breakfast at Skillets. 

I haven't eaten there in years, but it used to be my go-to post-race breakfast place, and it was a great way to end the morning.

Considering I had no goals for the race, I am very happy with my performance. And I'm happy with the mental outcome: I definitely feel invigorated and excited to sign up for some more races. I told Elizabeth last week that I don't really care about collecting medals anymore, but the elation of crossing a finish line continues to be one of the best feelings in the world.

ABK