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I've done the Beck 5k twice now, and when they opened up registration for this year's race, there was a new theme - it was "Capes and Cakes"! Oh, I'm always down for costumes and baked goods.
I got up around 4:30 and had some OJ on the couch (basically all my tummy can handle that early), then got dressed and woke up hubby. I took him to work and then popped over to the Circle K for caffeine. The register clerk was outside smoking, so I told her that I was going to go in and make a soda. She seemed very trusting, because she stayed outside and kept smoking. She wasn't done when I finished filling my soda, so I brought my dollar out to her and showed her it was all I got. She thanked me for letting her finish her cigarette, and I told her that I used to be in her shoes (I smoked until 2007), and knew how shitty it was to "waste" a cigarette. (Of course, I was just enabling a health-destroying habit...)
Anyway, I hit the road to Palatka. As usual, it was nice and quiet.
And hot. It was already 70º. At 6 in the morning. Yeah, it was gonna get worse.
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| Good god! |
When I got a little closer to Palatka, I drank my chocolate milk. I find that gives me some carbs and some protein without having to actually eat food.
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| Yummy chocolate milk! |
I scored a pretty good parking spot on the main drag, right across from the Bingo Palace! I went over and hit the potties (before they got too funky) and got my goody bag, which included a free oil change at the Beck car dealership, for being a Legacy Runner (I've run all races since it's inception). This is now the second race where I'm a streaker, or perfect, or legacy, or whatever you want to call me.
After getting my packet, I went back to the car to pin on my cape and gear up, then headed back to the starting area.
The 501st Storm Troopers were there, getting ready for photo shoots.
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| Moooooo-om! I can put on my own boot! |
Beck took a fun Legacy photo and posted it on Facebook. They also took a photo with everyone wearing capes, but I never heard the call for that photo, so I didn't get to join.
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| I love the chick on the left making out with the trooper! |
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| "Will Run for Cupcakes" |
They also had a photo booth out, so I stopped over there to get more fun photos.
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| Short line for photos - will be much longer later! |
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| My lines are tilted |
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| There's muscle under there, I swear! |
After taking those photos, I wandered around the start area, checking things out.
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| Thank you, Lord Jesus, for Mister Fans! |
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| Riverside Steps |
This race always has GREAT pre- and post-race goodies, and from the look of the tents, this year is no different!
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| Abe's Finest Meats brought hot dogs |
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| So. Many. CUPCAKES! |
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| A terrible shot of the HappyCakes contact info |
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| So much food! |
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| And even more food! And pizza being carried in! |
Shout-out to Batlady who was really proud of her "cape," which she made out of pajama pants. (She came in after me, but won an age-group award because she was the only one in her age group!)
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| A+ for Ingenuity |
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| Yes! Water that was cold BEFORE they put it in the ice |
Soon, it was time to line up, so I took up my place, about 3/4 of the way to the back; far enough back to be slow, but not so far as to be last!
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| Getting ready |
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| Shoofie |
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| I stayed behind them pretty much the whole time, actually |
They had a water stop at the first mile marker.
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| I hope the water's cold |
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| I love this house |
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| I love this house, too |
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| Is this one cold? |
And, of course, because this race benefits ARC of Putnam County, they had the best cheer squad at the trun-around!
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| Thank you, ARC! You guys are awesome! |
After the turn-around, we ran up River Road to the finish line.
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| So... Hot... |
Yup. That's definitely an over-50 finish. But lord, it's so HOT! My official time was 51:59 (16:44 pace). I was 11th out of 12 in my age group. 110th out of 131 females. And 208th out of 235 total runners. So, I beat 27 people.
At the finish line, we got our medal, an icy towel and an even icier bottle of water. Oh, it was so cold and tasty!
I stood in front of the misters for a few minutes, cooling my body down, and then headed over to the post-race tent. I grabbed a vanilla cupcake with vanilla frosting from the guy who was serving them - who loved my cape.
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| Cakes and Medals |
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| Yep, definitely not straight |
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| After I took this, like 5 different people lined up to do the same thing! |
The cupcake was divine! Okay, maybe I was just starving? It didn't taste like a Betty Crocker cupcake with homemade frosting. It was tasty as hell. I had to go back for more!
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| Not as divine, but still tasty |
This time, though, I got a chocolate cake with vanilla icing. I also got a slice of pizza and a hot dog from Abe's Finest Meats, a local butchery and grocery store in Palatka. The pizza was Papa John's (so, in other words, forgettable). The hot dog - while cold - was delicious. The chocolate cupcake was not as good as the vanilla cupcake (but then again, I'm not much of a chocolate cake girl). I could snarf down about 10 more of those vanilla ones!
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| Yummmmm, tube steak |
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| Veteran's fountain is filled and working this year |
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| Back |
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| Side |
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| Even the front! |
As you can see from photos, the sky was beginning to cloud up, so my idea of hitting the beach had to be shelved. I popped over to a local Walgreen's to change clothes (and got 2 Pimpsies - 16oz Pepsi cans - as Tinkle Tax™) and headed to St. Augustine. Since I couldn't hit the beach (which was my original afternoon plan), I had a back up plan of grabbing a slice at Pizza Time on St. George Street, getting some fudge and then window-shopping at the St. Augustine Outlet Mall.
Well, I forgot to get cash for the pizza, and only had a credit card with me (I go Tourist Commando with just 1 credit card, my ID and my phone), so that was a bust. I picked up my fudge and returned to my car (I'd put 90 minutes on the meter, but only used 30 minutes because I didn't eat lunch... waste of a few dollars!) I headed over to the mall and checked out a few stores. They have a VF Outlet that I've purchased things from in the past, but this time around was a bust. I wandered the remainder of the mall, but nothing caught my eye. I grabbed a soda at the RaceTrac next door and my body decided I wanted a cheeseburger. Okay, Garmin, where are the cheeseburgers?
Garmin said that there would be one at Hardee's in East Palatka (where I turn off of 207). Okay, I can wait that long. So, I'm driving....
...and I'm driving.
And driving...
Okay, where the hell is my cheeseburger?
I don't see a Hardee's.
My body is screaming for food! Oh, I'm gonna pay for this.
Okay, so I know that there's some fast food places near Palatka Mall. I'm pretty sure there's a Freddy's Burgers there.
Oh, it's a Sonic. Okay, I can eat Sonic. And it's a Sonic with a drive-thru, so hopefully it will go pretty quick (I'm late to pick up hubby). So, I ordered a basic cheeseburger combo. With tots, of course, and a slushie. And I wait.
And wait.
And wait.
And wait some more.
It's not an actual "drive thru" but "a place your order and get in line and wait for the lady to bring it to you." How this is more beneficial than pulling into a stall, I have no idea. But next time, I'm pullin' into a stall!
Finally, I kid you not, after 20 minutes, I got my food. They screwed up my burger and didn't make it plain, so I had to scrape off a bunch of lettuce. The top bun was cold, so I threw it on the dashboard to warm it up under the sun. Once I was able to eat it, it was tasty as hell though (again, I was probably just really hungry).
So, because of this, I was 20 minutes late picking up hubby, but he was okay with it.
By the time I got home, I could already feel the headache coming on.
(Heat+Dehydration+Exertion)-Calories=Headache.
Every damn time. I plopped onto the couch with my book and didn't move until dinner time. I took a migraine pill at about 5, but it put only a small dent in the pain. I was able to cook dinner - I thought I'd be able to eat it - but once I sat down to it, I totally regretted my decision. I ended up going to bed early with two additional Tylenol PM. Yeah... this was a NASTY headache. My night was miserable!
And ironically - the weather turned out to be PERFECT beach weather! Oh well...
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