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My bread and butter race: the 5k.

Unlike most people, I did my first 5k by accident. It was 2005 - aka 20 years ago. My dad picked me up and told me he was running a 5k. This meant I was running a 5k too because he had no one to watch me. It was a Halloween hayride themed race and I was in jeans, platform denim Sketchers, and a lavender rhinestone encrusted cotton zip up hoodie. I never knew I could sweat so much because, at this point in my life, swimming was my main sport. I hate being dressed inappropriately and I hated that I was ruining my outfit so I didn’t try that hard in the race. I ran a mile or so and then walked the rest as I waited for my dad to pick me up. 

But my dad really seemed to like running and he had goals, friends, and traveled to different cities to do it so when my elementary school started a Girls on the Run team, a few years later, I wanted to sign up. 

I got waitlisted but I was told one day during school that someone dropped out and I made the team! This meant I went to my first official running practice right after school in what I wore to class. I was dressed in denim yet again, but this time - it was one of those half denim, half fabric skirts with a thick belt that only a 2000s fashionista could pull off. I got in trouble and made fun of for wearing a mini skirt which motivated me to sprint past the other girls. I was so happy to beat everyone who’d been practicing for a few weeks on my first day! I won runner of the day and my coach was nicer to me because it was obvious: I tried the hardest. 

5th grade Whit running a 29 minute 5k. This was on our Christmas card that year!

We continued to run after school with one 5k race to end the season. My fifth grade year I told my dad I wanted to break 30 minutes and he paced me to it! He kept running ahead of me to take my picture on his new digital camera and I’d panic because I thought he was going to leave me in the dust. (I thought he was really fast!) Since Girls on the Run was a new program, I was the first at my school to break the infamous 30 minute mark in the 5k in just 5th grade!

I didn’t run in middle school at all. My school didn’t have a team. I joined spring track my freshman year of high school simply because I wanted to do a spring sport and didn’t know all the rules of other sports. The “team” was absolutely awful. They barely ran at practice and would just walk laps around the school eating Burger King. My relays would get canceled all the time because I couldn’t get 3 other people who “felt like it” on one single day. I don’t really know why I signed up again the next year but sophomore year was better. A lot of the lazy girls graduated and it was a new team! I was respected more and became team captain along with one of my friends who was also a sophomore. 

Whether I am bleeding, loosing a toe nail, or just completely numb - I always finish the race. In my adult running life I am trying to balance that determination with being more causal and putting less pressure on myself.

I asked to be put in the 3200M run which is the longest distance at a high school track meet (in Delaware) and I was told by my PE teacher/coach that the 3200 was a boy’s race and we didn’t do it. As soon as I realized other teams were entering girls in this race and we were getting 0 points just for not sending anyone -  I began to beg to do it. I was told this was such a far race and I should take it slow to avoid the med tent. I finished my first 3200 meter run in 17 minutes and wasn’t tired at all. The race actually went by kind of fast and the next time I did it I ran 14 minutes. I won by default because the other school didn’t send any girls. At tri meets I usually only raced guys but this became my race and I did it every single meet.

I ended my high school career at 5:46 for the mile. I'd love to get to 5:40. That's the thing with running there is always more to do.

The turning point in my high school running career was when I got the attention of a coach who specialized in the longer distances - of course, the boy’s coach. I was just in Disney World for a long weekend with Marching Band and I came back to a tri meet where I ran my usual 3200M just to get the points. I also got my 1600M (about a mile) down, 30 seconds to 6:20. It was the boys coach who noticed me and when asked how I randomly became so much faster I said “I was just trying to beat the boys.” For the rest of that season and my final two years in high school I trained with the boys team and welcomed any other girls who wanted to run the longer races to join us! My senior year, I was so proud to see my team go from never entering a girl in the 3200 to having the fastest girl in the state in this event. That girl was not me but, that’s ok because I just wanted a team to train with and coaches who would feed my competitive spirit.

Two mile team!

The only All Conference siblings of 2013 XC!

I decided not to walk onto the cross country and track teams in college because my body was so banged up and I knew I needed a break as well as a less structured life. I continued to run for fitness and jumped into a few road races. Most notably being the Cafe Gelato 10 miler where I ran 1:10 and beat the entire UD cross country team.

In 2018 I graduated and moved to Reading, PA. Now running wasn’t for competition or for fitness it was for exploration. I had never moved before and I learned my way around my new town through hitting the trails and exploring how they connect each park. Again, I ran a ton of road races - most of which I won for women. The competition was bleak but the routes were scenic and it felt good to be top dog. In 2019 I ran the Jim Thorpe half marathon. This was before running long distances became trendy. I loved it so much I immediately signed up to do the same race with the goal of staying at an 8 minute pace at 1:45. I was so close! The next year was 2020 so we all know how that race went - it didn’t happen.

22 minute virtual 5k @ my home course, Grings Mills just because I was bored.

I was furloughed so I ran everyday by myself in various parks, with a packed lunch, coloring books, and jewelry making supplies in my trunk for after. I continued my half marathon training since I thought there could be a chance the race may happen. My shin splints were constant so I went to my local running store to get the latest version of my same shoes. The person who sold me the running shoes had just moved to the area and asked if she could run with me. I ran the next day at tempo because I figured I had to be fast to not slow down the running store girl but, instead we never got to run together because I sprained all 3 ligaments in my ankle and was on crutches - then a boot from the end of September to Christmas. What a lovely year 2020 was.

First half marathon done in the Poconos Montains!

With all this baggage and all this history, I am proud to say my ankle has healed up enough for me to do some speed work and I was able to hop into my first 5k since quarantine times. My time was right where I left off 5 years ago and I did this while only running 3 days a week.  It feels great to get past this mental block that I will fall and injure myself. For so long I have been afraid to push myself because when I put my mind to something, I will do everything to make it happen including running my body into the ground. Getting to the finish line has never been my issue, it’s getting to the starting line that I am working on.

Shoutout to the best coach and husband for doing the race with me!