1 Day to Go: TK-421, Why Aren't You At Your Post?

Last night, Katie and I ventured to the Expo under the guise of picking up our race packets.  The real reason someone goes to the Expo is for the stuff.  Lot's of stuff.  And I caved:

Yup, those are my new Brooks Launch.  I have heard some really great things about these shows, and they were 20% off at the Expo.  20% off!  So I bought them.  I gave them a test run this morning, and I LOVE them.  They're considerably lighter than my Adrenalines, and they just feel great.  I can't wait to go on a longer run with them.

Fun Side Note:  At the TC10k this morning, there was a really close finish for first place.  The guy who took 2nd?  He sold me these shoes.

Speaking of the 10k, Katie raced it this morning too!  It was a cold morning (probably about 40°F when we got to the Capitol around 6:30am).  We hung out in the family fun tent by the heaters for a while, then Katie left to warm up.  When she finished, I decided to get a free cup of coffee from Caribou.  Remember, I hate coffee, but I REALLY needed to warm up.  So, I spilled the coffee all over the cream and sugar table decided to have only a quarter cup of coffee.

So, race time.  Katie was excited, and it was a great morning and course for her to meet her goal of a sub-60 10k.  Here she is about ready to head to the start:

Her race number reminds me of TK-421

Katie then leaves for 2nd Grade:

Look closely at the signs up ahead of Katie

So, my next goal was to spill more coffee get up ahead of the starting line to see her start.  Remember, now, that I'm trying to rest as much as possible before the race tomorrow.  I moved as quickly as I could, with a quick pause for the National Anthem, but everyone started moving!  Well, I guess the starting line wasn't where it said "Start", but 100 meters ahead of there, so everyone had to move up as part of a parade.  I JUST made it to catch Katie go by:

Looking very happy

Runners on their way.  Isn't this just a fantastic place to have a race?

Yup, I'll be looking at this tomorrow

So, I hung around for a while while she was out running.  My big goal was to find Hannah, who had a fun token for me (more on this later).  She is super cool and works for Twin Cities in Motion, and after texting back forth, I discovered she was at the media tent.  I searched for the media tent, but since exactly zero tents near the starting line are labeled, she had to help me again (thanks Hannah).

Runners started coming in, and when the clock said 55ish minutes, I knew Katie would be coming soon.  Lo and behold:

Not as cheery looking, but she's barreling towards the finish

So, did Katie meet her goal?  She sure did!  By a lot!  57'12"!!  I'm super proud of her, and I think she had a great time too!

I warmed up, Katie cooled down, then we left.  We almost had a disaster waiting for us in the parking lot.  When we got there in the morning, it was still dark, so I turned the interior lights on in the car so we could pay for parking.  When we got home later, the lights were still on.  Oops.  Thanks to Chevrolet for making the car smarter than me and preventing the battery from going dead.