Back in action

It's good to be back! I raced yesterday!!!

I was dreading the race when I woke up at 7 a.m. on a Saturday. But I forged on, and by the time the 25k-ers started, I couldn't stop smiling! It was a race! Race season has arrived! We started about 15 minutes later, and I got nervous right before the gun went off. The race was fairly uneventful. Flat, a bit windy on the "out," but therefore perfect for the "back" part. I stayed steady and didn't struggle much. I watched this one woman run, stop and walk, run, walk, looking very winded each time she walked. That was me last year, when I did my winter 5ks. It was good to see how far I'd come. I sped up as I got close to the end and enjoyed my finish.

Results:
-Chip time - 35:14; 7:06 splits.
-71 of 114 women
-7th of 8 in my age group -- not last! Acutally, had I been just 6 months older, I would have ended up 12th of 22 in the next age group.

Better results:
After the race ended, I was sitting down eating my bagels and coffee and this guy I saw a couple times along the race came up to me and told me I'd had a good race. Then, get this, he told me I was his fast pace setter and he wasn't able to keep up! It really made my race to know that I had helped push someone. Basically, it made my race.

With 7:06 splits, it means I've got to knock off just more than a minute per K to come in under 30 minutes by the end of the season. I'll have to find some plan for that...suggestions?