St. Pat's Run Double

Yesterday I ran a 5K and 10K put on by Pacers. The St. Pat's Run is a race they acquired a few years ago. Pacers also had it's own St. Patrick's Day race: Four Courts Four Miler (which takes place next weekend). I ran that one a couple years ago (my blog from 2014). I've also run yesterday's race before, but it used to be the St. Patrick's Day 8K (my blog from 2014). This year the course was different than when I previously ran it, and there was an option to run either the 5K, the 10K, or both. Rachael and I chose both, so we'd get a nice 9.3 miles of training in, and earn some nice swag doing it.

The weather was a little chilly, so I wore layers and long sleeves. I'm glad I did. I would have been over dressed for a marathon, but not for these shorter races. There was a damp chill in the air and the long sleeves and gloves were welcome. I ran into Megan and Pam at the start. Megan was also running the double.

Me, pre-5K and 10K
Hello, Megan and Pam

The 5K started at 8:15 AM and we had 45 minutes to finish it and catch our breath before the 10K start at 9:00 AM. Neither Rachael nor I felt like racing it, so we did a nice, steady pace using run/walk intervals. Other than the chill, the day brought good race conditions. It had nice views of some monuments and the river.

After finishing the 5K Rachael and I had some time to rest and I grabbed a bottle of water. I was glad I did. I hadn't brought my own water and I wouldn't get any on the course until two miles in. I needed more hydration than that, so I carried the rest of the bottle with me when the 10K started.
This may have been taken in between races or before the start, but now I can't remember

There were just as many people, if not more, doing the 10K. I had expected the numbers to be smaller, not larger. The 10K course pretty much repeated the 5K course but added a little extra distance on Rock Creek Parkway and on Constitution Ave. There were a couple out & back sections where you could see other runners. Most ran in green; many ran in costumes. I failed to take photos along the course because I simply wanted to keep a consistent pace. We did walk more in the 10K, and that was mostly of my choosing. I hadn't run since Tokyo and was still recovering from jet lag.

When we finished the 10K, we collected our medals. Yes, medals - plural - for running these short distances. It may have been the first year they had medals for this race. We got one for running either the 5K or 10K (same medal for both races), and a unique bonus medal for having run the double.

With Rachael at the finish; I specifically asked the volunteer if she could get the entire Washington Monument in the pic, and she said yes

Stealing Rachael's pic of the medals and her cider; first one is for either the 5K or 10K and second one is for the double

The race started and ended near the Washington Monument, and no alcohol is served on National Parks property, therefore we had to drive to Shake Shack in Penn Quarter to collect our post-race drink. We were able to have any drink on the menu, including beer, cider and wine. Rachael opted for a cider and a burger. I had a beer and cheese fries. We probably consumed more calories than we burned, but...oh well. Megan and Pam beat us to Shake Shack, and we sat and chatted with them about this and other races.

I enjoy doing some of the local, themed races. I think of them as training runs that earn me a usually fun t-shirt, and the opportunity to do some good people watching. It's also nice to share the experience with a friend.

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