10K around Kungsholmen Island

Racing season has begun. 

For me it started over a month ago, on a 5k through a muddy, hilly forest north of Stockholm with mounds of snow alongside the trail and trees toppled over as obstacles. 

Not my best time, but a good start.

That day, however, is not the photo you see above. This photo, taken on May 5, is from the 

10-kilometer Kungsholmen Runt

just a few weeks later.

At this point in the race, we had just powered up one of the course's long, slow hills and were just under 2 kilometers from the finish. We also happened to be passing just by my apartment building, at which point, part of me wished I was still in my bed on a Saturday morning as I'm sure so many others were. But that momentary longing passed and I focused on a strong finish.

My goal was to finish in under 50 minutes. For some reason, from the first kilometer, I'd got it in my head that I needed to run 4:30-minute kilometers. Really no excuse for such lousy math in the first kilometer. But with the speed of my first few kilometers*, I was able to finish in

[drumroll please]

49:30!

and 87th out of 679 women

Next 10k goal> under 49:30   Next race> undecided     Next run> tomorrow

*it wasn't until halfway  through the race that I figured out my calculation error

Kungsholmen Runt

Crossing the finish line of a race is a truly glorious moment. Whether a 1-kilometer competition or a 42-kilometer marathon, the sense of accomplishment almost always overshadows the feeling of exhaustion, which anyone is bound to feel if they've given it their all. 

On Saturday morning, I ran the 10-kilometer Kungsholmen Runt around the island of Kungsholmen in central Stockholm. I hadn't raced in almost a year (the last time being the Annapolis 10 Miler last August, during which I puked 3 times, again after, and had to have 2 IVs pumped into me to keep any liquids). But crossing the finish line on Saturday, I remembered what it is that brought me back. Fortunately this time, sans puke.

this is me, not looking my finest, but about to cross the finish

A friend asked me to run the Kungsholmen Runt with her the Thursday before, giving me a total of 2 days to prepare. Not to worry, though. I've been cycling to work almost every day for the last few weeks, and have been running a bit - well, a very little bit - lately. But in those 2 days, I trained mentally, deciding to aim for a decent time, but also not pressure myself to the point of sickness.

The weather on Saturday (as the last few days in Stockholm have been) was incredibly gorgeous: not a cloud in the sky - which nearly never happens in Sweden - and temperatures around 75 in the sun. It felt like heaven, and only 4 days after what I hope will be the last snowfall! 

The bana, or course, itself was a beautiful loop around the edge of the island, with views of the city, starting and finishing in a lovely park by the water. I got to the start line less than a minute before the starting gun fired. Still, I was able to settle into a good pace early on, and stayed pretty constant throughout the 10K. I finished in around 52:49 (my chip actually didn't register so it's an estimation based on video footage). Regardless of the precise time, it felt great - and the bullars (sweet buns) at the end never tasted so good!