Cheesetown Challenge 5 Mile Race Report

Yesterday, David and I went to Pinconning, MI so I could run the 5 mile Cheesetown Challenge race. Pinconning is the cheese capital of Michigan, hence the name of the race.

We arrived a couple of hours before race time so I could get my packet and we could check out the Cheesetown Festival. The race packet included a sample of Pinconning cheese, which we promptly devoured. Then we went to a cheese store, bought some cheese and stashed it in the cooler we'd brought along for that very purpose. The race was at 6:30pm and it was flipping hot, sunny, and humid. Not great race conditions!

When it was almost race time, we went to the start line and I realized that this was a very small race. I also realized that everyone else looked pretty serious and more fit than I am. I looked at David and said "I think I'm going to be last." The race started and my premonition came true - everyone took off and I was lagging behind almost immediately. I tried to keep up, but there was no way. I'm slow and that wasn't going to change during the course of the race. So I settled down and decided to go at my own pace.

What I learned is that when you're in last place at a tiny race where the roads aren't closed, you may well have a police car trailing right behind you to make sure that no cars come run you over. I had no idea how pressure-filled it is to be in last place! :)

There were a couple of people not too far ahead of me who didn't know how to pace themselves, so they were taking frequent walk breaks. Every time I caught up to them, though, they'd start running again. I guess I was their inspiration. :)

I was debating just dropping out of the race because I hated having that police car right behind me. Then I considered running alongside the car so I could chat with the officer while I was racing. But then at the two mile mark, my minor miracle happened. The two people who were just ahead of me could no longer maintain their pace, so they fell behind me. Hooray, someone else could have the cops on their tail!

I kept plugging away, checking behind me occasionally to make sure nobody was gaining on me. There were occasional spectators along the course and they were unfailingly kind and encouraging to me, which was pretty funny. Hard to take it seriously when someone says "great job" when you know better. :) At every mile marker, there were volunteers calling out split times. I told the volunteer at mile 3 not to tell me, because I didn't want to know. (And I was wearing my Garmin, so I knew anyway.)

With about three quarters of a mile to go, I caught up to another runner. He asked me how I was doing and I said that I was still making forward progress, so I figured that was a good sign. I asked how he was and he said he was struggling. He started to get ahead of me a bit, then he said "oh no, cramps again" and started walking. I wished him well and kept on going. Felt bad, but also was pathetically happy to pass someone else.

As I approached the finish line, I could see David taking photos so I tried to pick up the pace and look like a real runner. I will post pictures once I get a chance to pull them off his camera.

I finished the race right around the time I thought I would. It's interesting that I would have felt great about my finish if there had been more people behind me, but the same time felt like failure when I was so close to the end. I need to get a little better at only feeling competitive with myself and not worrying about what everyone else is doing.