Wichita started a new race series this year called the Double Gobble. Basically if you participated in the Turkey Trot (on Sunday) and the Say Grace 5K (on Thursday), you got a special bib and a special medal. I'm all about "special" things, so I signed up for both!
The Turkey Trot was freezing. I'm talking stupid cold. I talked myself out of running it like 5 times and changed what I was wearing probably 20 times, trying to figure out how to be warm enough, but not so warm that I'd be sweating the whole time. That morning when I woke up, it was 20 degrees outside, but felt like 10. I had 2 layers on the bottom, 4 layers on the top, and omni-heat layers on my head and hands. My feet were freezing. I just wore my regular running socks, but my running shoes are so "breathable" that all I felt was icy air coming in. I couldn't make myself switch my socks to wool or something because talk about holy blisters.... At the start line, I was pretty darn cold.
By mile 1, I was warmed up and felt good, except for a couple really cold toes, and I actually had a pretty fast race for me. I started out running with 2 other people, but lost one of them at mile 4.5 and the other at mile 7.5. Usually by mile 8 or 9, I'm started to feel tired and slow down a bit, but it must of been because of the cold air, it was like an ice bath for my legs or something, they just kept pushing along and I didn't feel fatigued or anything, other than ridiculously tight hips and a knee that was bugging me, but with those kind of pains I find it doesn't make them feel any better to slow down or walk, so if I keep running I'll get to the finish line faster. :)
I felt toasty warm all during the race, and even took my gloves off at one point. And then I crossed the finish line and 3 minutes later I was so cold it wasn't even funny. Where in the world were the finish line space blankets???? Here are the 10 mile finishers (there is also a 2 mile race as well, but they finished way ahead of us) with the finish line turkey.
Because I was one of the first 2000 people to sign up for the race, I got a free turkey! However, it was brutal carrying a frozen turkey back to the truck, when I was so cold myself. I didn't stick around for any of the post race activities, I took my frozen self, my frozen turkey, and my new 10 mile PR of 90mins flat(wooo hooo!!!) home to a super hot shower (well not the turkey, it stayed outside)!
The 2nd part of the Double Gobble took place just 4 days later at the Say Grace 5K on Thanksgiving morning. A couple months ago, both of the kids decided they wanted to do a 5K. "A real one, with a number and everything", so I signed them and Royal up for the Say Grace 5K and figured we could do it together. I was so afraid of it being brutally cold out that morning that I made them wear long johns under another layer of clothes, and I brought the wagon full of blankets and winter coats and hand warmers just sure they were going to give up half way through the race because they were too cold and then Royal and I were going to have to carrying a 70 and 40lb kid the rest of the way. Let's just say I overpacked and darn Wichita and it's weather I will never get used to. It was still cold Thursday morning, but not 10 degrees. It was like 30 degrees, but warm and sunny and no wind and totally lovely, and I totally didn't need to bring my wagon full of blankets and hand warmers.
My mom still being in town signed up for the 5K too! We got up in the morning and prepped our turkey and stuck it in the oven and headed out the door to the race.
We met up with some other friends at the start line.
Tonya's daughter Skylyn signed up to do the race too, just because Willow was going to do it, it was her first 5K too.
It's pretty amazing to think that we started working out with Tonya when I was pregnant with Willow and Jayden was 2, and now they are running a 5K with her! We just love Tonya. :)
So the race started and low and behold the kids did not want to walk, so I ran ahead with Jayden and Willow stayed with Tonya and Skylyn, while Royal pulled the wagon and walked with my mom. Royal and my mom eventually caught up with Tonya and the girls because they were kind of sprinting, then walking, then sprinting, then walking. :)
Jayden did awesome and ran the whole first mile without stopping. Then he would take little walk breaks and keep running, I'm guessing he at least ran 2.5 miles of the whole 3.1. I am so mad I accidentally left my darn phone in the wagon when the kids shot off the start line like rockets, and Tonya and I were just trying to make sure they didn't trip anybody or get lost in the crowd, so I didn't get any pictures of Jayden during the race. Big. Fat. Bummer. During the race, he did get a moment of "this is the worst idea I've ever had, I can't go on, my legs are tired", until he saw the finish line and then he picked up the pace and ran across the finish line with his arms raised above his head. He was pretty darn proud of himself and declared, "I want to do another one! I can totally do it faster! And next time I want to do a race with a medal!" Oh yeah, I'm teaching my kids right, you gotta pick the races with the best swag bags and finish line goodies. Jayden did pick up a key chain and a hand sanitizer and he was pretty happy with that. He finished with an official time of 45:49!
Then we walked back down the road to wait for the rest of our party. It wasn't too much longer before we saw the girls running down the street. Willow being with Tonya (who actually HAD her phone) meant I got a few pictures of Willow out on the route.
Willow finished with an official time of 51:01! (you gotta add a couple minutes onto the clock because we started in the back of the pack and it took us a couple minutes to get across the start line)
It was a really fun way to start our Thanksgiving!
Well, I did have a moment of panic when the kids and I (Royal and mom headed back to the truck) walked to the post-race party to grab some water and a muffin and banana, and Jayden decided to play hide and seek in a crowd of a few hundred people. Not cool, Jayden, not cool. Luckily, the girls filled me in on what they were doing, so I knew he wasn't abducted, but still, total heart attack.
We got back to the house with our turkey already cooking and mom pretty much made the rest of the meal. I made the mashed potatoes and cranberry-pomegranate sauce, so I contributed, but really mom did all the work. Thanks, Mom!
Since my friend Nicole and her family moved to Wichita 4 years ago, we've always ended up doing Thanksgiving together. We're both used to a big family and loud Thanksgivings, so we combine forces and try to make it special for the kids.
Our feast, buffet style, I just don't have a big enough table to put people and food on it. :)
And the kid's table.
It was a fun and loud and tiring Thanksgiving. We were going to go look at Christmas lights that night after dinner, but both of my kid's were kind of losing it (running 3 miles will do that to you), so we opted to put them to bed and look at Christmas lights another night. :)
