Happy Wednesday! Today I’m linking up with Annmarie from The Fit Foodie Mama, Jen from Pretty Little Grub, Michelle at Fruition Fitness and Nicole from Nicole from FitFul Focus for Wild Workout Wednesday!
This weekend I ran 18 miles, including the New Balance Bronx 10 Mile Race. This was my second time incorporating a race into a long run and it went pretty well! My mom was running the 5K which started 30 mins before the 10 mile race so I arrived pretty early. I used the free time to get in two pre-race miles. I knew there was no way I would want to run 8 miles after the race so I was happy to get in a few miles before the race officially started!
The weather was PERFECT – only 54 degrees and it wasn’t that sunny. I was so happy to finally have some Fall type weather for a race! What a huge difference from last weekend’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Philly race with the brutal humidity. The race started at 8:00 a.m. but I didn’t cross the start mart until around 8:20 a.m. There were around 10,000 runners, so it was a pretty large race, but they were still making announcements at 8:05 a.m. so the race was going to start late regardless.
I ran this race last year but I believe that they changed up the course a little bit this year. Either that or I totally blocked out last year’s race, lol. I also forgot how hilly this race is! Granted it’s not Central Park hills, but still it was a great workout for my quads!
The race course was as follows:
Miles 1–4: Start by heading North on the Grand Concourse. At about 3.5 miles, turn left onto Mosholu Parkway. At the four-mile mark, near Goulden Avenue, make a U-turn on Mosholu Parkway heading east towards the New York Botanical Gardens. After reaching the Botanical Gardens, head west on Mosholu Parkway, back toward the Grand Concourse.
Within the first two miles I was like “Wait, was this course hilly before?” It was weird because it wasn’t like huge uphills and downhills, but more like constant rolling hills if that makes sense?
Mile 5: Continue west on Mosholu Parkway until you reach the Grand Concourse, where you will turn left.
I loved this part. I think mile 5 went by super fast for me because I was really enjoying all the runners around me and the music! There was also a DJ on the course and he was AWESOME!
Mile 6–9: Continue south along the Grand Concourse.
This is where things got a little hard. I was plugging along at my long run pace and around mile 8 my legs just needed a break. I probably took around a 2 minute walk break just for the pain to die down a little. I really hated to stop, because I was almsot done, but I had to listen to my body and it was screaming “stop running”. Last year I had to stop to walk a little at mile 7, so at least I made it an additional mile this year before stopping, lol. This damn IT band is going to be the death of me 🙁
Mile 9–10: Pass the starting line and continue past Joyce Kilmer Park. At East 161st Street, turn right and follow the road toward the finish line.
This was the best part of the race because it was almost done (duh!) and we hit a downhill right before the finish line – it was great! We also finished right by Yankee Stadium which was a nice surprise.
After the race I went back home and ran the additional 6 miles. Holy crap that was the toughest part of the run. My knees were killing me when I first started but then everything started to click about a mile into the run. I really hated to have such a gap between miles 12 and 18, but that’s the only option that I had. I know nothing about the Bronx and didn’t really feel like trying to map out a 6 mile route.
So some pros and cons for the race…
Pros
Pre-race Communication – We received a few emails before the race with clear instructions on where to pick up our shirts and bibs before the race.
Race Shirt/Medal – As always, the shirt and medal were on point
Post-race food – Bagels, water, powerbars, pretzels, apples and Gatorade. Great spread of items.
Cons
Bag Check – I didn’t need to do bag check, but I heard from a few runners that its was pretty far away from the start line and not the easiest area to find. I also heard that there weren’t many signs telling runners where to go so that’s why some runners were confused.
Finish Area – The finish area was in a new spot this year and it was SO FREAKIN’ CROWDED. Seriously, I couldn’t even take one step. All the runners were like sardines and it was really hard to get water and the food items. I’ve never experienced a finish area that crowded. I think that’s something that should be changed for next year.
Overall I’m really loving adding races for my long runs. On Sunday I’m doing my longest long run yet…20 miles!! I’m also running a half marathon as part of that long run so at least I’ll get a nice medal for all my trouble 🙂
Susie @ SuzLyfe says
Ugh, a crowded end to a good race is a bummer. Adding races to long runs is the way to GO s—so good for your mental strength! And great job to your mom! Good luck on Sunday!
kookyrunner says
Yeah it was pretty annoying because all I wanted to do was leave and it took forever! Thanks for the well wishes for Sunday – I’m gonna need it!
Annmarie says
Girl look at you GO! That is incredible- you have really been rockin’ all the races this year!!!
kookyrunner says
Awwe thanks friend 🙂 I hope that my good luck streak continues lol
Ivanna says
Nice job. This looks like a great time, you look so happy too 🙂 10,000 folks?! WOW I can imagine the finish was crowded ugh!
kookyrunner says
Thanks so much Ivanna! I don’t mind large races but this was a little cray cray!
Nicole @ Fitful Focus says
Way to go!!! I remember this race from last year and don’t remember it being very hilly, so they must have changed things up. I do remember the roads were in pretty bad shape (lots of potholes), so I hope they fixed that!
kookyrunner says
Unfortunatley the roads were still pretty bad in the beginning of the race (I almost twisted my ankle in a pothole)!
Michelle @ Fruition Fitness says
I love having races to do as long runs! It’s totally hard though if you can add the miles on directly after…but I wouldn’t know where to run around the Bronx either! Great job!
kookyrunner says
Yeah that was definitely the hardest part! Luckily this weekend my race is in Central Park, so I can just run a few miles in the park after I finish the race!
Janelle @ Run With No Regrets says
Congrats on your long run! Seeing you knock out your long runs during races, I’m starting to wonder why didn’t I think of that? LOL. Kudos on running those last 6 miles after the race…you got it done! Good luck with 20 this weekend!
kookyrunner says
Thanks so much Janelle. I don’t have a lot of uniterupted paths to run on in my area, and I knew I wouldn’t want to drive an hour north to get to a trail, so half marathons and other long races are the best ways for me to get in the miles, lol
Abby @BackatSquareZero says
I am so proud of you for getting 6 more miles in after the race was over!
kookyrunner says
Thanks Abby – That was probably the hardest part of the race!
Ange // Cowgirl Runs says
I’m subbing in for Jen on Wild Workout Wednesday today 🙂
I haven’t had many opportunities to do so, but I’ve always enjoyed using a race as part of my long run (so long as I remembered to run slow!)
kookyrunner says
Hi Ange! Thanks for stopping by my blog.
I’m really enjoying adding races to my long runs – it makes the long run not as boring!