DONNA Marathon Weekend: FIS 5k Race Report 2026

What a roller coaster ride it was to even get to the start line for this race! I signed up for it months ago because I’d heard from a lot of other people that running the Donna was a big deal. When I signed up, I {of course} had to pay an extra $7 to get a shirt in my size. But more specifically, there was no mention of packet picket not being available on race day. There was nowhere to pay extra (like with Gate River Run). So, silly me, I assumed that I’d be able to pick up my swag on Saturday morning.

Fast forward to about a month before the race, and I get some pre-race emails from The Donna Foundation, and they specifically said that there would be NO race day pickup, and that all racers MUST pick up their packets on Friday.

Yah, that won’t work… I live about 90 minutes away from the race location, and it makes no sense to drive there and back, or drive there and stay the night, for a simple 5k race. So I replied to that email on January 13^th, asking if there would be any concessions for out of town people, or if I could swap to the Virtual Option (they were the same cost). I got no reply. About a week later, I reached out via The Donna Foundation’s website contact form, with the same questions. Still no response.

At this point, I was so frustrated with the lack of communication, and the supposed “bait & switch” with having to do pickup on Friday that I began to entertain the idea of saying fuck it all and just not going… I can afford to lose $50, but I didn’t really WANT to, ya know? So in a last ditch effort, I messaged them via their website one more time, and I finally got a response (apparently they had disabled the contact form because it was glitching). The person who responded (let’s call them MM) offered to swap me to the Virtual Option or race day pick up for $10. I told her that I would be fine with race-day pick up (though I was still ticked off about all this), and requested specifically that a W3XL shirt was set aside for me (since I seem to keep getting screwed on receiving shirts that I pay extra for!). She told me that she would personally pack my bag and bring it with her to packet pickup, and not even charge me the extra $10, since I’d had such a frustrating experience… that was very nice of her!

Now that we got that all sorted out, it was time to look forward to race day, and oh yeah… now there’s a crazy cold front on the way. I’m talking temps IN FLORIDA under freezing for race day. Oh, and some rain. I jut had to laugh… I fought so hard to get packet pickup, only to be rewarded with a cold as fuck rainy race? But at this point, I couldn’t not go!

When I went to bed Friday night, it was supposed to be about 55º when I took off, but unfortunately, when I woke up on race day, I was looking at low 40s. Hubby took the day off, so I drove up extra early, to ensure that I could get a good parking spot (so I wouldn’t get lost) – parking was at a hotel 10 miles away. When I got there, I assumed that the shuttle bus would pick up near the hotel, so I parked there. I went inside to use their potties, then asked the front desk clerk where the bus picked up – turned out that the bus picked up at an outer lot about a quarter-mile away, so I moved my car over there and got a good spot right by the bus stop (easy to find when I get back!).

I stayed in the car (toasty and warm) for about 15 minutes, but once I saw the line begin to grow, I decided I should probably get in line. I dressed in a base layer and shirt when I left the house, then tossed on a beanie and running jacket and got in line. Within five minutes, though, I realized that I needed another layer, so hopped back over to my car to get my puffer jacket and a pair of gloves, then got on the shuttle. I’d rather be too warm than too cold.

So many people still behind me (waiting for the bus)

Bus ride took about 10 minutes and it dropped us off a few blocks from the start line. The start area was quite hectic and not well organized. There were some tents on the left side of the road, some tents on the right side of the road, with the ‘corrals’ in the middle of the road – but no way to get to either tent area without having to swim upstream through the corrals. A walkway or sidewalk would have been extremely helpful!

I found the tent to get my packet, and shocker, I ran into my Race Shirt Nemesis – Blue Hair Carol. I gave her my bib number and said that she couldn’t find it. I told her that MM told me that she’d set it aside, and someone pointed to a bag on the chair behind them, which ended up being my bag. Without missing a beat, Blue Hair Carol told me that they didn’t have a shirt in my size, blah blah blah, but I could come back later and hopefully they’d have one in my size (remember, I paid $7 extra for this shirt that she says they don’t have). I opened my bag, and MM came through for me – my W3XL shirt was nicely folded inside. I may or may not have given Blue Hair Carol a smirk as I walked away. I found an empty table, folded up my bag and shirt as small as possible, and tucked them into my waist pack, just minutes before the race began.

The energy as we took off was amazing, such girl power! Lots of survivors and supporters… I almost felt like an imposter. I have no skin in this game, why was I here? But off I went at a fast walk, gaining energy from so many spectators waving and cheering all of us on.

Start Corrals on the left, Tents on the right, and past the corrals on the left

I didn’t warm up very much at all during the entire race, maybe unzipped my exterior jacket by the end of the race. Coming in to the finish line, everyone was so energetic and amped, but then the race announcer Fitz turned off the music so she could relay something she was just told – a finisher told her that she did this race every year, but she’d just gotten terrible news and expected that she wouldn’t be here next year. Or any year after that. Fitz was in tears, repeating fuck cancer, man. FUCK cancer. Someone next to me said “There’s no quit ‘til you’re cold.” I took this to mean that you don’t quit ‘til you’re dead. And I completely agree. You absolutely never know when something can change or improve.

Never give up; you never know what is in front of you

This sounds selfish, I know that, but… this announcement sucked all of the energy out of my own finish, but this woman (the one with the cancer) got SO MUCH SUPPORT from everyone around here that I didn’t even care. I wish I knew who she was, so I could check to see if she comes back in 2027.

I finished under an hour, at 56:29, and was 1761/2262 total runners, and 118/149 in my age group. Anyway, I got my medal, and well… It kind of looks like a vagina with dick arms. It’s a pretty medal, like a suncatcher, all glistening and pink (but, um, aren’t all vaginas glistening and pink?)

It's cold and getting colder!

I wandered around the after party, but there wasn’t much there – there were some places selling food or coffee, but not a lot of fun swag. I picked up a bottle of Electrolit (tasty) and a few Strawberry Watermelon Bloom drinks (also tasty). I headed back to the bus, riding in the cool kid single seat in the back, back to the nearly empty parking lot (being slow makes it easy to find my car!).

Same seat I sat in when I was in high school

I took the car over to the hotel again so I could change clothes and visit the expo (there’s a half and full marathon tomorrow). Then I went to Shake Shack for lunch (not impressed), hit up Trader Joe’s and Dollar Tree, then grabbed a soda and headed home.

Shake Shack Bacon Cheeseburger, Fries, Coke Zero, Vanilla Milkshake - $25!

ETA – A few days later, I found out some cool stuff:

• There were participants from all 50 states, and 11 countries
• They raised a quarter-million dollars for The Donna Foundation
• Fitz (the race announcer) is from Gainesville (possibly still lives there?). Also, she beat cancer herself, which explains why she is so powerfully emotional about this race. Who doesn’t love a confident, healthy, hilarious, kick-ass, conservative woman? Instant follow on X! 

Race Notes                                                          

Location: Jacksonville Beach

Host: The DONNA Foundation

Race Fee: $30 (Plus extra $7 for Women’s 3X Shirt)

Packet Pickup: Near start line; chaotic

Parking: Miles away, at Host Hotel

Support: One water stop (accessible twice), lots of cheers near start/finish line
After Party: Big, but mostly food trucks and concession tents ($$)

Results: https://my.raceresult.com/380156/results#1_979DAD

Give Me What I Paid For! - IQ Fiber Winter Beach Run 5k Race Report 2026

I’ve done the summer version of this race a few times, back in the mid 2010s, and the last time I did it (in 2016), I got heat exhaustion! So I’d decided to not do this race anymore, at least until I was in better shape (i.e. not fat). I haven’t done it since… But there’s also a winter version that I’ve wanted to try but never remembered to sign up for… until this year!

I left home around 6am and had an easy drive to Jacksonville Beach. I got there around 7:45am (for a 9am race), scoring a great parking spot in the lot right by the park. I went up to get my packet, and I was told that they didn’t have any Women’s XXL shirts, and that I could check back afterward to “see if any showed up.” I asked to get a different size, and the volunteer kept telling me that they couldn’t swap or substitute before the race. BUT… I wasn’t trying to swap or substitute – I was just trying to get a shirt that was owed to me for signing up for the race. I was getting pissed off, because I specifically paid $5 EXTRA for a shirt in my size, and somehow ended up with NO SHIRT?!?

After a few minutes of trying to be rational with this woman, I gave up and went back to the car. Where I decided to tweet about it. Like, I didn’t expect any sort of outcome, but I was just so damn ticked off, that I needed to name and shame the company at this point.

I headed back to the park around 8:40 and as I was walking I heard my bib number being called over the speaker, telling me to come to the Info Tent. When I got there, I was told that they just randomly had someone turn in an WXXL shirt (yeah, sure) so I was able to get the shirt that I paid extra for. Was it the twitter bitching? Did they find an extra one in a box? Did someone actually turn one in? Who knows, got mine. I wasn’t happy, per se, but satisfied. Like, I don’t take pleasure in having to shame someone publicly to get what I deserve. I took it back to the car, then back to the park to finally line up and walk this race.

A tiny bit of the race was along the Seawalk sidewalks, but the majority of it was on the beach. Trudging through the soft sand always sucks, but then you get to the harder-packed sand at the water’s edge and it’s easier to walk. I didn’t do any running, but I did want to run, so that’s a win, I suppose (I feel like my body is fighting back from a year or so of not training).

I finished under an hour – 58:54 – and was 445^th out of 486 total participants. I was last in my age group, and ironically, I could have beat the 22^nd lady if I was just 20 seconds faster!    

I wandered around the ‘after party’ which was sad as hell. A perk of this race is hot cocoa after the race, and even though it was already in the high 60s, I got some anyway, and y’all… I kid you not, there were cases of individually packaged cocoa mix under the table, with the cocoa being kept in those large Igloo cooler dispensers. Someone had to sit there and open thousands of Swiss Miss packets and mix them all together! As you can imagine, the cocoa wasn’t all that hot, and not super-tasty. The only other thing there was some rando handing out almond granola. Not an almond fan, so I didn’t get any. The after party was very sad!

I walked around the adjacent Jax Beach Arts Market, which was as sad as you’d imagine, then headed back to the car. I changed at a local gas station then headed north to treat myself to a platter of fried deliciousness at Safe Harbor Seafood. There were about 30 Navy men in their fatigues, waiting in line. As I stood there looking at them, they all looked so YOUNG! I’ve reached an age where I can look at new soldiers and realize that they could all be young enough to be my child. Bless you all, my dudes, and stay safe as you make your way through the world.

Anyway, I got the Fried Shrimp and Scallop basket, and took it outside to the patio. I forgot how much I hated these stupid, hipster, aluminum seats (they aren’t meant for big butts). Sadly, the scallops weren’t cooked all the way through (I guess?) because they felt kind of mushy inside. The shrimp was delicious, nice and plump. I need to remember to skip the scallops and just get shrimp! Although I’m beginning to wonder if the product is worth the hype anymore? This meal cost me about $25, and I only ate about half of it.

With a full belly, I decided to check out the St. Vincent de Paul thrift shop. Everyone raves about St. Vinnies, but this one wasn’t impressive. It was very small, and felt bougie. Good for them for marketing their wares in a great way, though! I felt like I was shopping at a boutique that caters to 60-year old women who like to lunch. I ended up getting a small fleece blanket for a buck, that I use at work (our building is 200 years old and not well insulated).

Next, I headed to Hope’s Closet Thrift Shop  and HOLY MOLY, what a store! I didn’t know what to expect, only that the store looked like it would be big, but wow. It was probably 75% clothing, so at first I wasn’t all that thrilled – it’s hard to find Plus Size clothing at thrift stores. This store was weird, though. They had some items that looked brand new with tags, like they got it from a warehouse or outlet, but then they also had racks of typical thrift clothing. Racks were very well organized, by type, then size – including Plus Size! This made me so happy, because it meant that I wouldn’t have to dig through racks and racks of clothing just hoping to find my size! I could simply go to the Shirt rack, and look at the small selection of Plus Size, and then move on if I don’t find anything. I ended up wandering this store for three hours, immersed in the hunt! I scored a few pair of nice (like really nice) work pants and some little tchotchkes for Valentine’s day décor.

I thought about hitting up another thrift store, but it was late in the day, so I grabbed a soda and just headed home, exhausted! 

Race Notes                                                          
Location: Jacksonville Beach, FL
Host: 1^st Place Sports
Race Fee: $25 at time of registration (Plus extra $5 for Women’s 2X shirt)
Packet Pickup: Easy to find, unsatisfactory interaction
Parking: Across the street, but I got there early
Support: One water table (accessible up and back), beach was not closed to tourists
After Party: Pretty much nothing! Some rando with granola, an Igloo cooler with Hot Cocoa
Results: https://my.raceresult.com/378077/results#2_EB48B6

Endless Summer 5k Race Report 2025

When I registered for this race, I kinda forgot that I'd already signed up for a 5k just last weekend, so yeah... A back-to-back! 

I didn't do a Race Report for the other race, but it was the Wounded Warrior Project Carry Forward 5k. Always a good time, easy race because so many people are just walking. Nothing amazing happened. I got an amazing parking space about 1000 feet from the after-party, which was great. The tee shirt is super comfy. Picked up half a dozen bottles of Core water (love those for work because they're sturdy and refillable). Finished 56:38 and got a great medal. 

Carry Forward 5k Medal

Anyway, so on to this race, the Endless Summer 5k on St. Augustine Beach. I did it back in 2021, and I said that I wasn't impressed, but that I'd give it another shot, so here we are.  

I got there with plenty of time to spare to ensure that I got a parking spot in the lot within the park, and went to the front to get my packet, and that’s when shit hit the fan. I was told that they didn’t have a shirt in my size – a Women’s XXL, which I paid extra for. The old blue-haired cat-lady  “allowed” me to get a Men’s XXL instead, which was just so frustrating… Men’s shirts suck because they’re so boxy, which is why I chose a Women’s shirt, and why I paid EXTRA for a Women’s shirt that would actually fit my large woman body… At least the reusable tote bag and sticker were cool.

Size 11 Flip-Flop for reference

As I walked around and made my way over to the start line, I got a text on my phone; it was my old boss asking if I was here – he said he thought he saw me! We texted back and forth a few times before we found each other, gave each other hugs, and then he went back to his family.
 
We took off and trudged through the soft sand to the hard-packed water line. I won’t lie, my only goal today is to stay far enough in front of my old boss so that we don’t have to chit-chat for an hour, or do that awkward “walking near each other” dance. So I put some speed in my steps and kept my pace pretty quick (of course, “quick” is relative, lol). Didn’t end up working all that well, because we finished within a minute of each other, and only 10 people between us.

Finished 59:42 (353 out of 463 Total Runners)

I got my medal and photo, then headed back to my car. I hit up one of the beach showers to wash all the sand and yuck from my legs before I headed out. I changed my clothes and headed toward downtown to get some fudge, but sadly, my “super-secret parking lot” directly behind Savannah Sweets has been turned into private parking! So I drove around for a little bit, looking for parking, but it was just busy EVERYWHERE, what the hell? Before I knew it almost an hour had gone by! I gave up on fudge and went over to Schooner’s for lunch, and when I asked the waitress why it was so busy in town, she told me that today was the first day of Nights of Lights. Yep, that’ll do it! Everyone was here to see the town lit up in millions of Christmas lights, no wonder there was nowhere to park! Also explains why I kept seeing a lot of “Park Here for Shuttle” signs – being a person who goes to Saint Augustine a lot, I assumed that those were for something specific, and probably cost $20 to park! Oh well, no fudge for me. Instead I got delicious fried shrimp. After that, I hopped over to Walmart for some pre-vacation shopping, then made my way home to pick Hubby up from work.

So, now that I’ve done this race twice, do I think I’ll do it again? Nah, probably not. The shirts are cute, but this is twice now that they haven’t had a shirt in my size (ahem… THAT I PAID EXTRA FOR), and it’s just not special enough to overlook that. Being in Florida, there’s lots of options for on-beach races, if I want to do one of them instead (and I will… spoiler alert!)

Race Notes                                                                                        

Location: Anastasia State Park (Saint Augustine), FL

Host: Don's Friends

Race Fee: $45.29 (Saved $3 with promo code ACRR)

Extra Fee: $2 (Women's XXL V-Neck Shirt)

Packet Pickup: Easy to find, didn't have my shirt size

Parking: Got there early enough to park in large Park parking lot; more parking available along the roads

Support: One water table (accessible up and back) 

After Party: A few vendor/expo type tables, good snacks (Utz pretzels, Rice Krispie treats, bagels, bananas, water); No music or entertainment afterward

Results: https://runsignup.com/Race/Results/25416#resultSetId-606552;perpage:5000

Potatoes & Parkrunners - Spud Run 5k Race Report 2025

Clockwise from me: Ava, Kristen, Luis, Samuel, Cliff, Jon, Dustin, Troy

I've never been a trendsetter before, but you guys! I spread enough awareness of this run amongst my parkrun people that there were a bunch of us there! Whenever a group of us at parkrun are standing around, it never fails that we talk running and races! Last year, two people heard me talking about Spud Run and they ran it (I didn't know this at the time). A few weeks ago, I saw one of the guys wearing the 2024 shirt, and we started chatting about it, and he told me that he never would have known about it if not for me. As we were talking, another person asked about it, so I told them about it, and they told me the following week that they signed up to do it in April. Word got around and by race day, I think we were up to almost 10 people! Luis, Cliff, John, and Samuel all did the 15k challenge, where they ran the 10k first then the 5k. The rest of us just did the 5k. 

I got there pretty early and got a good parking spot really close to the starting area. The library was closed off this year, so packet pickup was outside. I got my bib and shirt, and I was a little frosty... They didn't have any 2X shirts - why offer them if you aren't going to order them?! The XL fit, but is definitely tighter than I'd like, so for now, it's been relegated to a "hang around the house" shirt. I picked up my bag of potatoes and brought everything back to the car. I walked toward the finish line to cheer on any 10k parkrun finishers, but I could see Clifford's Big Red Truck and he was already done, so I made my way over there instead. We BS'd for a while then I went looking for others. I found Luis, who said that he finished the 10k in about 40 minutes! After that I found Kristen & Troy, the rest of our parkrun people, did the group shot (above) then lined up for the 5k. 

I tried, y'all... I was looking forward to getting some running in, but my IT Band was not happy, so by Mile 1, I went back to straight walking. Kristen & Troy caught up with me and we walked together for about a mile, then took off on their own intervals (they finished maybe two minutes before me). 

I actually beat my 2024 time, coming in at 56:32, wow! 278th out of 317 total finishers, I was the 160th female (out of 190) and the last finisher in my age group.  

Yes, that medal is shaped like a potato!

Finish Line Video

Afterward, we all picked up our potatoes (I got a second bag, in lieu of cabbage) and went our separate ways for the day. I was kind of bummed, because I'd psyched my introverted self up for a group breakfast or something, but at the same time I was relieved that I didn't have to suffer through a group breakfast or something. 

These potatoes were so freakin' delicious!

I changed clothes and got a soda at the nearby RaceTrac then spent the day shopping around St. Augustine. I was on a mission to find a nice pair of work pants and/or a nice dress that made me feel pretty. I've been feeling down on myself lately, and I wanted to change that. 

First stop was Bealls Florida, which I thought was going to be a Beall's Outlet, but was actually their department store. I've actually never been in a Bealls Department store! Their Plus Size section was a good size, but their dress selection was small. I found a cute A-line dress that fit well, only made me look like a small tent, but none of the patterns were cute on me. I found a few cute shirts, but they didn't fit well (either too big or too tight across the bust). This store is interesting in that it truly is just how they advertise... "The Florida Store." All of the clothing was light, breezy fabrics that would be cool in the Florida sunshine. Lots of pineapples, flamingoes, nautical, or tropical vibes. The only problem is that I'm not much of a Florida fashion kind of gal. So all I ended up with was a blousy blue top and a cool running hat with a hole in it for a ponytail (I've been wanting one of these, and this one was on clearance for about ten bucks!)

Next up, I checked out the Burlington; now, I always have pretty good luck at the Burlington in my town, but boy, oh, boy... this Burlington was nasty. It looked like the store was going out of business, and there was about a month left before it closed its doors for good, and management didn't give a shit if the store looked good anymore. It wasn't going out of business, of course, but it looked that way... The Ladies fitting room was closed and blocked off by two tables full of clearance items and surrounded by carts full of junk. The wired locks that secured the more expensive purses were just dangling from hooks in the purse section. There was random crap on the floor. Racks were picked over and messy and overstuffed so you couldn't move stuff around. After about five minutes of walking around and trying not to flee from the ick of it all, I gave up... I felt like I was in a thrift shop where bad things happen in the back. And don't get me wrong, I LOVE thrift shops! 

Okay, so that was a bust; I regrouped with a corn dog and pretzel from Sonic then headed over to my all-time favorite Dollar Tree and found lots of goodies to bring home! I got some snacks, some root beer, a ready-to-finish vase, and some fake flowers to make a few new arrangements for my office. I bought a bunch of acrylic (okay, plastic) drawer organizers, but now that I'm back home, lord only knows what I'm going to use them for... It seemed like a smart buy at the time, I swear!

Next up, I wandered around Beall's Outlet, since I was still on a mission for pants and dresses, but they had nothing, so I went over to Marshall's. I was ready to give up at this point... These types of stores rarely have anything Plus Size, and if they do, it's of the Clown or Tent variety, so I didn't even look for anything really... I ended up with some undies and a bag of Butter Toffee popcorn. 

At this point, I was super-tired (I've been dealing with some PMS-like symptoms this week), so I decided to call it a day. I picked up some Chick-fil-A nuggets and a drink and made my way home. 

The Universe Told Me I Could Do This - Gate River Run 2025

After doing Gasparilla last week (after a completely shitty 2024 of no training, no gym, no nothing really), I honestly didn't know if I should - or could - do another 15k just six days later. I thought on it for a few days, vacillating between let's do this! and fuck it, stay in bed!, and finally decided to just follow my heart and do whatever it told me to do. 

On Friday, I didn't even want to go, but I got all my stuff together anyway - my plan was to go and at least pick up my bib and swag. And if I didn't want to do it, I remembered that, last year, there was an option to turn in my bib and have my medal mailed to me a week later. Either way (doing it or not), I'd have my medal. 

Waking up on Saturday, I felt, I don't know... optimistic? I wasn't feeling fuck yeah let's do this about it, but more like I can do this, yeah, I think I can do this. I made really good time to Jacksonville, until I hit the usual traffic jam at Arlington. All I wanted to do was park in Lot J (which would be close to the Expo, so I didn't get lost), and like a dumbass, I thought I was smarter than the other million people here, and tried to find a different way to access Lot J. I drove away from Arlington, over near the parking garage, past the parking garage, but as I got near Lot J, they waved us away from the lot because it was already full (at 7am, wow!). So I continued to follow traffic, in a big-ass circle, until they brought us back over near the garage, where I sat in stand-still traffic for probably 20 minutes! I was beginning to fume and get angry... If I wanted to actually do this race (and the anger seemed to point that way), I still needed to park, walk over to the Expo and get my bib, then get to the actual start line! 

An estimate of my route to find parking

I accepted my fate at this point, assuming that there was some reason that I wasn't going to be able to participate. Traffic began to move, but I had no idea where they were sending us, because I gave up and slipped into a random parking lot with a $10 Parking sign. I realized that my wallet was in the truck, but thankfully, I have a card stored in my Garmin Watch, so I was able to NFC pay. We live in the future, y'all, so cool. 

As I parked, I realized that I was parking in the old expo area (the Jax Fairgrounds area), which was a huge win because I knew exactly where I was, and more importantly, how to get back to my car. 

I geared up, putting on my sneakers and stuffing my pockets, but not really rushing; it was already 8am at this point, and I assumed that there was no way that I'd make it to packet pickup and back to my wave before it took off. The expo was at Daily's Place this year, on the front side of the stadium. The inside was nicely organized (and probably much busier when the Expo was actually open). I was able to pick up my shirt, bib, and bag, but they ran out of pint glasses, which ticked me off; if I paid a fee for swag, I should get all the swag. 

The National Anthem started while I was still inside the expo building, and it kind of deflated my balloon... I really didn't know if I'd make it back to my wave before the race started (though, in hindsight, I forgot that my wave takes off more than 20 minutes after the speedy folks, lol). 

Let's go!

After the anthem, the Race Announcer said that they were going to postpone the start for 10 minutes, due to a disabled vehicle on the Main Street Bridge. I think that 10 minute delay was The Universe's way of helping me out, man. The Universe held up 15,000 people so that I could make it to my wave. The Universe is awesome. So I pinned on my bib and made my way over to The Pink Wave, which was actually right outside of Daily's Place. Getting there around 8:20, there was enough time for me to pee, pack my swag into my waist pack, and still had to wait about 10 minutes before I could sneak into the back of The Purple Wave. 

Okay, so now that I'm actually starting this race... can I finish this race? Who knows! Let's find out!

The course had a few changes from last year, though I feel like I say this every single year, because of the never-ending construction around the stadium. The start went straight down Gator Bowl Boulevard, instead of the "back way" from the past few years. I didn't plan on busting my ass for a good finish time... I just wanted to go as far as I could without hurting myself, and if it turned out I could go all the way, well then good for me! But if there was any reason to quit (other than I'm tired or I don't wanna), I was going to listen to my body and quit. 

Shoofie!

Getting up and over the Main Street bridge was a little rough, but I survived. I could feel the months and months of skipping cardio, that's for sure! I did a little running on the downhill, feeling okay (the only running I did, though). I checked in with my body at the 5k mark, and I felt good - no muscle aches, no breathing troubles, no issues to be found. I peeled off my sweatshirt and tied it around my waist and kept going. 

River Road was cacophonous and much more raucous than previous years. As I got on Hendricks, I saw some old geezer standing on the side of the road, waving his hand over his head, looking for someone, and I realized it was a friend of mine from parkrun! I knew that S and A were coming, but I didn't know anyone else was coming! So I walked with C and J until the corner and then they sped up and took off again (and by "took off" I mean they just walked faster than me, but I think that's because C had to pee). Knowing that I had some friends on the course with me (besides super-speedy S) gave me a little pep in my step, since I wasn't alone. 

Feeling so much better than 2024

At the 6 Mile Flag on Atlantic, I was still feeling pretty good; this is where I knew I had to quit two years ago, so I was happy to keep going. C & J passed me again (C finally got to pee, and they got behind me at some point). 

J & C kinda looking like Luigi & Mario

Mile 7 was deemed The Sober Mile by the people who were volunteering there, and The Sombrero Guy was giving out hugs, so I took him up on it. As I gave him a huge, strong hug (I really needed a hug, apparently), I thanked him for the Sober, since this is a very drunk race. He truly appreciated that thanks, so I'd wager that he is sober for a specific reason. I got an ice cold bottle of water and tucked it into my bra to drink on the bridge (though the ice in my Nathan was doing well still). 

Soon....

And finally, it was time. I stopped to stretch before I got on the entrance ramp. I took stock of what was hurting (though at that point, I damn sure wasn't gonna quit) - my feet hurt, of course, some vague pain in my legs, mostly along the outside, from my butt to my shins. But not major system malfunctions! I can do this! I chose to stop right before the Mile 8.3 flag for a photo op and to catch my breath before tackling the most uphill part of the entire bridge, then I just put my head down and trudged on until I got to the apex of the bridge itself. Music was pumping, everyone was woo-hooing, people driving by were honking, it was a party!

It was HARD this year, y'all

And then it was all downhill. 

Let's go, let's go, let's GO!

All the race promos said that the finish line was right at the bottom of the bridge but they were full of shit… I kept looking for flags and balloons and shit, but there was nothing. Oh the finish line is way over there at the start line! (And by way over there, I meant maybe .2 miles, but STILL!) 

Did they walk the entire way like this? 

At the bottom of the exit ramp on Gator Bowl Blvd, there was a marching band, but more importantly, there were some cutie patootie kiddos handing out popsicles! Oh, you know I got a popsicle! I ate a few bites of it then chucked it in the bushes, tucked my water bottle in the waistband of my skirt and crossed the finish line with my hands held high!

This wasn't the photo I was aiming for, but I love it!

I did it, I did it!!

My official time was 3:09:34. 

My 5k time was 59:23, and my 10k time was 2:01:42.

I was the 7,184th out of 7,318 total Females, and 686th out of 698 in my age group. 

I was the 13,600th finisher out of 13,860 total finishers (so, I only finished in front of 259 other people!)

I got a bottle of water and my medal, then veered off to the side of the chute to stretch my calves. For some reason, I put my head down on the railing and I just started crying, like crying crying! Thankfully, I was right in front of a speaker, so no one heard me! I have no idea why I was crying, either. Because I did it? Because I finished? Because I didn't hurt myself? I don't know. But I gave in to it and let myself sob for a minute or so, then got my shit back together and took a finish photo. 

My shirt is all jacked up because of my waist pack and sweatshirt

I looked around for any familiar faces, but didn't see any. I'd kind of hoped to see at least C & J hanging out and cheering me on at the finish line. Not finding anyone, I headed over to where I thought the after-party was. But... Where the hell was the party? All I saw were pavilions and team tents over by the bathrooms, and then a pretty waterfront area (Jax is in the process of rebuilding or improving this entire area). I sat down on a nearby bench and transferred things from my waist pack over to my swag bag, caught my breath, then walked over to the waterfront for a few selfies. 

So, it's not quite as big as my head, but it's pretty big

As I walked over to the water, I saw another sidewalk that led past a thick tree line, but it didn't seem like there was a party over there... I just thought that people were just making their way back to their cars. When I got home, I pulled up Google Maps and saw that I fell victim to Run Brain! The party was definitely behind the tree line! I also found out later that S, C, J, and even B (who finished 30 minutes ahead of me) were all looking for me afterward - I felt so bad! 

This is the map from the GRR Website; I was over on the left side where it says Team Tents

Anyway, after walking around the not-the-party area like a zombie, I gave up and headed back to my car, thankfully parked in a place that I knew exactly how to get to! I sat on Google Maps for a while, trying to decide what I wanted to eat (while watching the traffic at a stand-still as everyone else tried to leave the area). I hurt too much to stand in line at Safe Harbor, as much as I would love some fresh seafood, so I settled on Culver's and then shopping my way out of town. I made my way to a local gas station to change and get a Pepsi. I indulged in cheese curds and buffalo chicken fingers, but was far too stuffed to indulge in a caramel sundae afterward. I also ended up skipping any shopping; my legs were stiffening up, and though walking would have been smart, it was already almost 2pm and I needed to get home. 

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Race Notes

Location: Jacksonville, FL

Host: 1st Place Sports

Race Fee: $81 ($55 Race, $8 extra for 3XL shirt, $10 extra for Day of Race Packet Pickup, $6.30 Refund Protection, $6.74 Processing Fee, -$5 Early Bird Promo Code)

Packet Pickup: Hectic to get to, quiet inside

Parking: Get there EARLY! Seriously, 90 minutes early or more!

Support: This is the biggest party race I’ve ever done, with tons of neighborhood support, but no on-course Gatorade or Fuel 

After Party: Highly lacking options besides beer, water, and bananas (according to those who actually found the party!)

Results: https://my.raceresult.com/326628/results#1_600DC3  

I Love Frosted Flakes - Gasparilla 2025

Well, folks, for better or worse, I made it to Gasparilla Weekend. No training at all. No walking except for random parkwalking. No gym for weeks. At my heaviest weight. At my least flexible. Yeah, I wasn't looking forward to this, but I paid for it and didn't want to be a quitter. 

Before we left, we had to head over to Hubby's check-in with his nephrologist. His labs continue to be stable, so his Chronic Kidney Disease isn't worse but it isn't better, either. She changed his meds around a little bit, and we'll come back in a few months for a follow-up. 

After that, we came home to pack and relax, then left around 1pm - we weren't able to check in to the VRBO early, so it didn't make sense to leave earlier than necessary. We picked up Chick-fil-A for lunch and had an easy drive down the interstate. We checked in the VRBO (super cute!) then I headed out solo to the Expo for packet pickup. This late in the day, it's much less busy, but some of the vendors had already left, too, which sucked. I got my two shirts, which weren't matchy-matchy, and the final Challenge Jacket (they'll do something new next year), which was more fabric-like than the ones in the past, which were more like rain jackets - I love this one so much more! 

There wasn't a lot of cool swag being given away, and a lot of the booths wanted you to use your phone to register for something or another to get swag. Yeah, no... I'm not into that. I found my name on the big board then made my way back to the car, and then the VRBO. 

For dinner, we went to Trip's Diner again. I don't know if it's because it was busier, or because it wasn't "new to us" but I don't feel like it was as tasty as it was last year. It was still very good, but not "roll my eyes backward" good. 

Back at the VRBO, I laid out my gear for the morning, set my alarms, then filled up the tub for a hot bath. Except it wasn't hot. The bathtub was an old-school cast iron tub, and because it'd been so cold lately, the cast iron was freezing, so all of the hot in the hot water was immediately cooled down, and I ended up stewing in a tepid tub. Boooooo. We relaxed in bed with books and Twitter until I eventually fell asleep. 

Saturday morning, I woke up around 5. Got dressed and tried (unsuccessfully) a few times to poo, then brought a glass of OJ to bed while I read for 10 minutes or so. I woke Hubby up at 5:30 and we were in the car by 6. We were in a parking space by 6:25, which is better (but still not the best). Hubs dropped me at the start line with a kiss, then I got in my corral to stretch and warm up and wait until it was my turn. Over the start line, I met up with Hubs at the 5k tent and walked together to Publix, where he left me. Today was going to be only walking, no running. Of course, this put me pretty far in the back almost immediately. 

Around Mile 2.5, I met up with a woman who looked like she was having a hard time; turned out that she had recently had knee surgery and was cleared to run, but stepped off a curb wrong just a few days before and totally jacked up her knee! She didn't think that she'd be able to finish this, but was hoping to at least make it to the 5k mark before quitting. Because I'd slowed down to check on, and talk to, her, we were really close to the back at this point - I could see the sag wagon and cop car behind us. 

After I left her, I shed my fleece top in front of the Rough Rider truck, hoping that I'd be able to pick it up on the way back. I started getting the gotta potty feeling after that, but skipped the potty at Mile 3, thinking that there was another one near the 8k turn around area. Unfortunately, that entire area was fenced off for construction, so I had to go about another mile to the potty by the Star Wars tent, and it was disgusting. Dribbles all over the seat, and a runny pile of poo on the back corner of the seat. But I had to GO so I just got heaps and heaps of TP to clean off the seat so I could go. Not my best potty experience, but at least I didn't drop my water bottle in there! When I came out a few minutes later, I was last last. Like, the cops and sag wagon were way up there in front of me. Fuck. 

I kept going, assuming at some point that someone would tell me to quit, or get on the sidewalk, or something, but no one ever did. At the Halfway Sign, I talked to someone who looked official who said that they were probably going to open Gandy soon, and I'd probably have to get up on the sidewalk, and I should just turn around there, so I did. I only cut off .4 miles (really, Gandy seems so much longer!), but I apparently missed a timing mat, and mentally, it fucked with me...

Now I'm in front of a good number of people who did that extra .4 miles, and I feel terrible! I decided that I was just going to keep my pace and not freak out about anyone passing me (they're obviously faster than me to begin with). Maybe .25 miles after turning around, this old woman with trek poles walked by me and singsong said cheater, cheater, cheater! Like, bitch, get the fuck away from me before I kick your poles out from under you. You don't know me. 

Anyway... at this point, the sky was darkening and the wind was kicking up and the temperature was dropping and I really thought it was going to storm, but all I had to battle was a heavy, cold, wind. It was blowing right at me, making it feel like I was walking through mud, and it was hard to get a good deep breath. I wished that I hadn't thrown my fleece on the ground! I had about 2 miles to go before I could get it back, and I realized that I was stupid and put it on the wrong side of the Rough Riders truck. See, the 5k course turns around at the Rough Riders truck, so my fleece is now part of the 5k course! And if I didn't get there before the speedy 5k people, there was no way I'd be able to get it back. (For safety reasons, I wouldn't be allowed to cross over to that side of the road). So I picked up a little bit of speed, watching the 5k side of the course the entire time, and I was able to veer over there and grab it, as I saw the Timer Car coming my way. I crossed in front of the Police Motorcycles to get back to my side of the road with just a minute or two to spare before the lead runner came by, whew! I put my fleece back on and got warm, watching the speedy runners go past me.  

I'm ready to finish!

I trudged along the last mile and a half as the super-speedy folks whizzed by me. Some offered encouragement, most just ignored us. Because I missed the timing mat at Gandy, I have no official time, but my Garmin says that I finished 2:57:10, doing 8.9 miles. I met up with Hubby in the finish chute, and he said that my time looked like I did pretty good, and I had to tell him that I didn't complete the entire thing. I didn't tell him about Pole Bitch. I was grumpy and almost cried but kept it back. I got a warm, dry, finisher towel, some water, some Froot Loops with Marshmallows, and some Pringle Mingles (love saying Pringlemingles). Spoiler alert, the Froot Loops were nasty... The loops pulled moisture from the marshmallows, so the loops taste stale, while the marshmallows - which I thought would be crispy like Lucky Charms marbits - were soft and chewy (eta - it might have only been this bag; other bags I munched on at home were perfectly fine). 

Back at the VRBO, I tried again for a hot bath, but this time it was the water heater that failed - the water heater was too small of a capacity to provide enough hot water for a tub that size, so it was running tepid before the tub was halfway full! Boooooooo!! After some doomscrolling, I used my massage gun on my thighs and calves, which was miserably painful, but definitely needed. I also searched Google for lunch options, but my body had no idea what it wanted; I ended up choosing Portillo's. We drove more than 30 minutes to get there, but it was worth it. I was hoping that I could get a hot dog on a regular (non-seeded) bun, but they don't do that, so I got a spicy chicken sandwich, hubby got a burger, and we got a cup of cheese for our fries, drastically underestimating what we thought 4oz cheese would be, lol! We got a huge vat of cheese! 

The food was amazing - the chicken had a good texture and breading; it was super-juicy (actually dripping and squirting when I bit into it), but my body didn't really want to finish it after I ate about half of it. Hubby burger was delicious, the fries were crispy and fresh, and the cheese was as awesome as you think. The restaurant itself was really well-themed and laid out with lots of different eating areas, we'd definitely go back again. 

We walked off our lunch at IKEA; I was on the hunt for a cute basket or box with a lid that would allow me to hide the home phone router on the white shelf in the living room (instead of hiding it under my side table). Plus, I wanted some of the butter sugar cookies from the café. Sadly, I didn't like any of the basket or box options, and the café had no cookies, so we actually left IKEA without spending a single dollar!! Has that ever happened before in the history of ever? 

We scratched our 'dessert' itch at Bo's, with a caramel sundae and a Thick & Chunky in bed. After a few hours, we started talking about dinner, and we realized that we were too damn comfy and snuggly to get out of bed, so we had a dinner of Doritos and Portillo cheese and Little Debbies, and conked out for the night! 

I was feeling pretty... okay... Sunday morning. No pain other than "I walked a 15k yesterday" type pain. I think that the massage gun made a big difference (I'm so thankful for the crazy Black Friday sale last year!). 

Because of the construction near the 8k turn-around, the start line had to be moved backward, so this year, the corrals were on Platt Street, between Publix and Parkside of Bayshore. It's a skinny, two lane road, and it was super claustrophobic! Nobody had any idea where their "wave" or "corral" was, so we all just started shoving in. I ended up with the 12-minute pace people (from what I overheard of random strangers talking), but instead of trying to swim downstream to the slow section, I just stayed where I was and let people move past me as we all moved forward toward the start line. This seemed to work pretty well but I should have waited a little bit more... I took off with the 14-minute people. 

I was also stressing out because the race program warned the 8k walkers in the back that they needed to keep a 16-minute pace, or they may be shunted to the sidewalk at some point - I didn't want that to happen, so I was moving faster than I originally planned. But, you know, yay for me... I was moving faster than originally planned! 

I saw Pole Bitch clack by around the first mile, and I just wanted to trip her, but chose not to; she either didn't recognize me or chose not to attack me, so I let it go. 

Nothing memorable happened along Bayshore, so I just kind of zoned out and walked my race. I pulled out my 15k medal at the bridge like I always do, and at the finish line did a quick video of finishing - I was met at the end again by Fitz, which was so cool! 

My official time was 1:37:25, which (as expected) is my slowest time ever (more than 16 minutes slower than the first time I did it in 2015). Because I missed the timing mat on Gandy, I didn't get an official Challenge time, which technically means I didn't finish the challenge. Oh well... I finished it in my heart, and I have the medals to prove it, so let's just accept that I finished it. 

I got my cold, wet, finisher towel and my two medals, then hit up the snack tables for more Pringlemingles, and then at the Frosted Flakes table, I grabbed two bags (I love Frosted Flakes!), but the volunteer said I could have more, so I kept taking one more at a time, then I slyly asked if I could just take the whole box? She said that she couldn't give me a whole box (wink wink), but she wouldn't stop me if I just took the half-full box in front of her. So I did! She even put three more bags in there for me! I lost count, but I think I ended up with about two dozen bags of Frosted Flakes to snack on. My Run Brain was fixated on these bags, and I was like dancing around with happiness with so many bags of Frosted Flakes, lol!

Back at the house, I skipped the bath, but did lots of massaging, especially on my upper thigh/side butt area (apparently, this is part of my IT Band). I wanted to cuss, it hurt so bad, but in that "oh, fuck yeah" kind of way. I got dressed for lunch and pointed us toward La Segunda in Seminole Heights - who knew this was here so close?! Oh, this one is only a bakery (so many HUGE ovens!) - we picked up a still hot as fuck right out of the oven loaf of Cuban bread, an oatmeal cookie and a pound cake for us to munch on later, then drove over to the La Segunda on Kennedy for actual lunch. Cuban for me, 1915 Club on Cuban Bread for him, delicious as ever. He also picked up a chocolate cake slice to bring back to the VRBO for later. 

We packed up the other halves of our sandwiches to bring them home to eat on Monday, and then for some reason, I got fixated on the idea of finding out if Tampa had a Kroger (of course they don't... this is Publix territory). But he googled around and found two locations that were listed as being Kroger locations (directly on Kroger's website), so we went on an adventure! Sadly, both locations were actually just Shell gas stations... WTF, Kroger? Back at the VRBO, we spent time together; I'm sure we ate dinner, but for the life of me I can't remember what it was... it was probably just junk food (probably pound cake and oatmeal cookies!). 

Monday morning showed up grey and wet, a completely rainy morning. We packed up and left the VRBO, heading back downtown so that we could drive the length of Bayshore Boulevard - Hubby's never seen the course at all, and I've never driven it, so we thought it'd be fun to do. Every mile or so, he'd say wow, this is longer than I thought or when do you turn around? or how much further? Though it was rainy, I pointed to the end of the white Bayshore balustrade (way in the distance) and said that we had to walk all he way to the end of the balustrade line along the water before we turned onto Gandy. We drove down Gandy then turned around and came back, driving over the Platt Street Bridge (where the After Finish area is) and then under the Convention Center. I think driving the entire course gave him a better understanding of how hard this is for me... it's not just a simple 15k... it's mental. It just goes on forever, it's so flat and boring and the same, mile after mile. There's no shade on the way back. It's a deceptively simple course, really. 

After this, we went to the La Segunda Central Bakery in Ybor for pastries to take home (including a quesito, sugar cookie, cinnamon bun, peanut butter cake, and an additional loaf of bread). On our way out of town, I picked up a soda at Circle K then set Google Maps to take us to Wildwood then home, but somehow it planned it out backward, which we didn't realize at first! I was wondering why I was taking such weird roads just to get to US301! So, we got a little inadvertent adventure before we fixed the mapping. In Wildwood, we hit up the Christmas/Valentine's clearance at Russel Stover, though I bought very little since I still had so much Christmas clearance candy from Walmart at home (I got two bags of chocolate Santas, and a few whip cremes). Hubby, on the other hand, replenished his stash of candy - I think we spent about $50 together. We skipped ice cream in favor of actual lunch at Hardee's right down the road. We were the only customers in the entire place, so at least our food was freshly made for us. I got a kid's chicken tender meal AND a small Hot Ham & Cheese sandwich, AND a maple biscuit. Hubby got a cheeseburger meal. All of that food hit just the right spot (though the biscuit was not nearly as good as I'd hoped), and kept my belly happy the whole way home. 

Once unpacked, we jammied ourselves and just relaxed the rest of the night. I plan on working from home tomorrow, and I just know I'm gonna HURT! 

I know you wanted to see my big box of Frosted Flakes!

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Race Notes

Location: Bayshore Blvd, Tampa, FL
Host: Gasparilla Distance Classic Association
Race Fee: $156.98 ($140 Challenge {15k/8k}, Processing Fee $16.98)
Packet Pickup: Easy to find within the Tampa Convention Center; bib pickup first, then shirt/challenge swag/swag bag. Contained within the expo
Parking: Hectic but well-controlled via Tampa Police downtown; we park in Fort Brooke Parking Garage every year ($15 each day, so $30 total, well worth it).
Support: Water and Gatorade on course, very abundant. No fuel for 15k or smaller distances. Community holds up fun signs. No booze (like Gate). Rough Riders hands out donuts from Krispy Kreme.
After Party: I don’t go to the party, but the food option afterward is amazing… Bottled water, cups of Gatorade, bananas, bagged snacks from sponsors (this year was Frosted Flakes, Froot Loops, Pringles, Gatorade Protein Bars). There’s obviously tons of beer, since Michelob is the big sponsor.
Results: https://results2.xacte.com/#/e/2573/placings