16 September 2007

Running Wild for the Detroit Zoo

Today the whole fam went out to the Detroit Zoo for the annual "Run Wild" race — a benefit for the zoo sponsored by LaSalle Bank. Our friends the Talberts came too. The dads and kids did the one-mile family walk, Sue did the 5K, and I did the 10K. It was my first time doing that great of a distance — I mean, I've run that far a handful of times at Hudson Mills and around my neighborhood and stuff, but never in an official timed event. This first picture is Sue and I after we were done. For the record, we are glowing in this photo, not perspiring.

It felt good to conquer 6.2 miles, but before you get all impressed, let me just tell you I was pretty darn slow. I'd done the 5K at the zoo a couple years ago at 28:44 (yeah, I was slow then too!) so I thought I should be able to run the 10K in about double the time. But I ended up clocking in at a little over that, at 1:01:17. Hey, I'm getting older! I'm actually pretty impressed with myself for keeping my pace at just under 10 minutes per mile. Regardless of my speed — or lack thereof — it was a fun day and it certainly gave me a good reason to get up off my arse these last several weeks.

Plus the post-race party is a lot of fun. There's food and entertainment, and you get to hang out at the zoo for as long as you want. Here are a few shots from our afternoon: