20 van Alphen

I have been training for 2 good months since my knee injury,  training has been going well, it has became part of my daily life. My knee has been doing much better but not 100% !! After my ski vacation and the 30k in the dunes my knee started to feel sensitive. With some good care my knee is being under control but it can be unpredictable!! Since I enjoy racing so much I thought why not give it a shot and run the 20k of Alphen aan den Rijn?
This is my first 20k race ever, so this is an automatic PR :-) @runningRonald is part of the organisation/coordination of the business Run, he has been so busy preparing for that day!!
When I signed up for a race, I received my start number at home with a sweet message from Ronald. Thank you RR!!

On Sunday March 3rd, the day of the race after a nice breakfast with my boys, they dropped me in Alphen around 12:00. The start of the race was not until 13:30. I walked toward the business center after reading Ronald post. He invited bloggers/twitters to use the business lounge facility and get to meet and greet other running mates. I also got to meet his sweet wife Miranda who has also been working hard to make this event a success!
The business center is a real fancy lounge. It was very nice, not too crowded and enough places for everyone!!

Thank you again for letting us relax in the business center :-)

At 13:15 after delivering my bag, I headed to the start and went all the way to the front of the race to join the competition start group. It was amazingly crowded, I really thought it was a small race but to my surprise it was much bigger than I have expected!!
Start took off on time and I took off with the goal to finish somewhere around the 1:25. First 3 km went really well I felt strong but  around km 4 my right calf cramped out in a way that every step I took I felt like a stretch from my ankle toward the middle of my calf....This is really not a nice feeling and I have never experienced cramps in my calves!! Why Now? What happened? what did I do? The more I ignored it and kept running the more I had the feeling that my calf is getting super contracted and it felt very very hard as if I just walked the 1860 steps of the empire state. The thought of stepping out was getting bigger in my head but HEY maybe i did quit once but I am not a quitter and no way on earth I was going to stop. I thought to just run in a comfort pace till the finish and that what exactly has happened. After ignoring my cramp for 10 km, somewhere around the 14 km the cramp was gone and I enjoyed the last 6 km without complaining and questioning myself!

A constant pace to the finish and I crossed the finish line in 1:27:26. Yes I am disappointed but Yes I am happy to have finished despite the cramps and Yes I did enjoy the race, the surrounding and everything that this course had to offer!!

At the finish I bumped into more runners which I knew and most of them were happy with their results but I didn't waste time I headed fast to the business lounge where hubby was waiting for me, we headed home and still managed to have a productive fun afternoon the 2 of us with PeuterD.

I always find it so rewarding when I manage to keep my house neat, enjoy a run or race and be there for my family! The day ended with a great dinner cooked by the best chef in house!! Another amazing Sunday...Looking forward to the next one...