Nikki's Resolution Run Race Report - Jan 1, 2009

We had a wonderful, quiet New Year's Eve at home with friends and woke up around 9:30 on New Year's Day, to drag ourselves out of bed and do the annual Resolution Run 5k at our local Running Room store. Even though we didn't have a rockin' evening the night before, it was very nice to have the race start at 11:00 am - it gave us some time to sleep in, greet the new year and don our cold weather gear.

One last check of the mailbox on our way down to store yielded a welcome package from Sarah - the shirt had arrived from Oregon! Thanks Sarah!

Unfortunately though, it had started snowing again the night before and we were greeted by about 3 fresh inches of snow on the ground. That's not a lot of snow, but it nicely covered the layer of ice that was already on the ground - very slick! A couple days earlier they had notified us there might be a course change depending on weather conditions, and the new snow definitely forced a change.

Instead of the standard 5k sidewalk loop, they decided to run us around a huge mall parking lot that at least gets plowed and salted. So, not the most scenic of routes, but at least it would be somewhat safe. There was a great crowd ready to start the run and everyone was in good spirits despite the weather. My friend and I huddled in a corner to stay warm before we started...

After the plows made one last loop of the parking lot, we all lind up and got ready to start. We had a few funny words from one of the clinic instructors to get us pumped up and then we were off!

So how would I describe this race? Well, how about WET!!!! The first lap around the parking lot wasn't too bad, but the pavement was pretty slushy and slippery. My friend and I actually preferred to run in the fresh snow because it seemed to offer some better traction. We had to dodge snowballs thrown by the volunteers, but that's okay.

However, by the time we got around to the second lap, everything had turned into a big slushy mess. The puddles were huge and we quickly got soaked.

The race was fun though and as mentioned, everyone was in a good mood. We got some funny looks from people arriving at the mall for their shifts, but hey, that's all part of the fun. We all had a great time splashing around in the puddles with each step.

Post race breakfast was a great spread put together by the volunteers - pancakes, yogurt, bananas, oranges, juice boxes, the usual fare, but for some reason it tasted extra yummy. I think the cold and the wet had something to do with that. So, after we had a bite and caught up with some running friends we hadn't seen during the holidays, I decided to pose for one last shot in the snow...

It probably doesn't look like much snow to those of you from colder climates, but that's the beauty of Vancouver snow. It melts pretty quickly but then turns into a very icy, slippery, slushy brown mess! Anyhow, the Resolution Run was a fun way to start of the New Year - it wasn't officially timed, but I think it took us around 27 minutes or so.

After slogging it up the slippery hill to our house, we decided we should shovel the driveway and sidewalk, so the Shirt that Races became the Shirt that Shovels!

So, after running and shovelling, I finally made it back into the house and sat in front of the fire to warm up a little bit. It was a very fine New Year indeed!

So what's next for me? Well, you'll have to check out my blog to find out! What's next for the Shirt that Races? Well, I believe it's heading out to Ontraio or possibly Tennessee!

I hope you all had a great New Year and I look forward to reading about the shirt's coming adventures. Upon reviewing this post I see I forgot a photo with the race bib attached, but since the shirt is in the wash at the moment, I'll update with that pic and with my addition to the shirt's writing...