Iowa Games/Des Moines Corporate Games Cross Country Race

This morning I participated in the Des Moines Corporate Games Cross Country 4.4K race. The race was held in conjunction with the Iowa Games on the Iowa State cross country course in Ames. With Erin out of town (running the Bix 7 actually), I dropped the girls off at my sister's house and headed for Ames.

I don't think the weather could have been any more perfect for running, especially considering the time of year. There were fewer runners then last week for the road races but it was still a great turn out. They had a longer, 8K race that started at 8:00 am followed by the 4.4K at 9:00 am. Many of those who ran the first race opted to run in the 2nd race as well. The Pioneer runners had a great showing in the first race with many runners taking home both Iowa Games and Corporate Games medals.

Dupont Pioneer/Corteva Cross Country Team

As we lined up for the 2nd race I had flash backs to high school, which is the last time I ran in a cross country race. The course was a little damp, but other than that was in great condition for running. As we approached the back half of the course there were some pretty good hills that posed a bit of a challenge but it flattened back out nicely for the finish. I had forgotten my watch at home so I had no clue what my pace or time were until I approached the finish line. I crossed the line with an official time of 27:01, an average pace of 9:54 per mile. Last week for the 5K road race, I averaged 10:20 per mile so I was very happy to see that improvement. I ended up finishing in 2nd place (out of 2) for my age group scoring 85 points for Pioneer. That brings my total points contributed this year up to 140, fairly insignificant compared to our company total but I was really proud to represent my employer for the games. 

Dug this gem out of a tub in the basement, this
was from junior year of high school and the last
time that I would have run a cross country race

I have a few weeks off of racing as I build up to the Bluff Creek Triathlon on August 19th. Due to my back injury, I am not able to spend time on my bike, which is very disappointing. I'm hoping to get some good training for the swim and run in prior to that race to help make up for that and to keep my overall fitness level up.

I only have a few races left for the year as I am planning to wrap up my season by the end of September. I think that my body is in need of a couple months rest to heal up and prepare for what lies ahead in 2019 so the timing should be perfect.