Drumstick Dash 2012

Since my parents moved to Indy, we’ve had the luxury of not traveling for the Thanksgiving weekend. So in lieu of a long car drive to Galesburg, a new tradition was born – JD and I start the day by running the Drumstick Dash! Last year, I walked the shorter course with my friends and family. This year, I was back to running and had some of my favorites by my side.

Meg, Bri and I had talked all week about running the race and doing it with a little holiday flare. Bri already had a cute turkey hat but Meg was planning on crafting our turkey hats the night before. However, on Thanksgiving morning, she texted me that she and “free-hand crafts” don’t do well together. So with only 20 minutes before departure time, I pulled out my craft box and made us extremely authentic and stylish Pilgrim hats. Wearing all black, I was sure that I looked like I stepped right off the Santa Maria.

JD decided to get some extra miles in so ran from our house to the start line (approximately 7 miles) and I picked up my friend Cole to carpool together. Cole is one of the funniest human beings I have ever met (follow him on Twitter @colefarrell) so I knew we were in for a laugh-a-minute morning.

We all congregated by the start and had quite the crew! Dana and Christi were there. Our friends Adam and Rory. JD. The Blys. We saw plenty of people we knew. Over 12,000 people participate in this event from dogs, babies, runners, walkers, grandmas and grandpas. The entire parking lot and street are packed with plenty of people in costume (some dressed up as a cornucopia!) and the overall feeling is just one of happiness. Especially since it wasn’t freezing or raining like in years past!

We took our traditional group pictures….

…and eventually, Dana suggested we make our way to the start line so we lazily did, never once considering where our position was in relation to the actual start. We found out soon enough. JD started at the front and took off right at the gun. He finished 28 minutes later – 9:28ish. We didn’t even cross the start line until 9:25am!!!!!! We had positioned ourselves amongst the families, strollers, kids, dogs, walkers. Oh well….it’s not like we were competing! So as we moseyed up with the herd, Cole kept us all entertained. “The only reason I still do races is it’s my chance to hear Black Eyed Peas” he claimed as the speakers blasted “Tonight’s Gonna be a Good Night.” He also told me that by cleaning my ears with Q-tips after every shower, I am essentially shoving a cotton covered battering ram down my ear canal and turning my ear into a Yankee Candle. We were all in fits of laughter.

Bri and I also noticed that some of the turkey hats out there looked quite phallic. And there were SO many of them. I pointed out an entire herd of penis-turkey hats only to realize that it was our friend Martha and her family!! She came running over and we took a picture of her awesome hat.

She vowed to find us on the course and within a mile or so, she did.

Cole was walking the short course and Dana/Christi had made their way up towards the start so when we finally did get moving, it was Bri, Meg, me, Adam and Rory. We bobbed and weaved through the massive crowds for the first mile, which was about a 10:10 pace as a result.

By mile 2, things started to disperse and we came in around a 9:40 pace. We ended up averaging a 9:54 pace which included a walking water stop. Definitely not my fastest, but I was happy with it. I realized while racing that I am not in my best shape. Not that I should be – I have been barely running the past month and just enjoying my time off. But with a marathon training program looming ahead of me in the near future, I know it is going to be rough getting back in shape.

Anyway….Martha joined us for the last 3 miles and we had Adam take our action shot.

Now you might be looking at that last picture and thinking “Meggie, are you wearing underwear to run in?” and the answer is no. But I was wearing new spandex shorties that I hadn’t run in before. And very early on I realized I will not be running in them again. They move right on up my legs and don’t stay in place at all. So within just a few steps, I felt like I was running in undies. I think these are going to be crossfit shorts only.

With less than a quarter mile to go, Martha and I sprinted it in. Every time she edged in front of me, I picked up my pace and she did the same. It was a fun way to cap off the 4.5 miles.

We took a few post-race pics, met up with Cole and JD and headed our respective ways for the remainder of the holiday.

JD got 101st place overall! He’s a beast.

We all had a great time running together and felt at least slightly better about our calorie intake after a solid morning workout!

Meg and I have since run and it only furthered my hypothesis that I am just plain out of shape. December training is gonna be rough….but that’s for another post

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!!!!