Jingle Bell Run 5k

Hi everyone!  As I mentioned yesterday, I ran my final race of the year on Sunday- the Jingle Bell 5k.  Today I'm going to be recapping of the race.  I'll start with an overview, followed by a breakdown of the location, event, course, and how I did.

Location Overview

This is a race that I've done years and years ago at North Park, but it was recently relocated to the North Shore in Pittsburgh.  I love this location for races, because it's easy to get to, there's lots of convenient parking, and registration/packet pickup is in the Great Hall in Heinz Field.  The hall is covered, which is perfect in case it rains, and there are also lots of real toilets.  For all you runners out there, this is a huge luxury!

Event Overview

This race is very family friendly and has lots of different events going on.  There's a pet costume contest, a tinsel trot for kids, 1 mile run/walk, and a 5k.  Almost everyone dresses up in costumes- both spectators and runners.  I love how festive the run is!  I will warn that most people put jingle bells on their laces, so if you have sensitive ears, this could give you a really bad headache.

For the 5k, there were pace signs set up as informal corrals, but the majority of the people participating are either jogging with a group for fun or walking.  I lined up near the 8:00 pace sign, and there were hardly any runners around me!  Most people were around the 10:00 sign, so I knew this would be a fun, non competitive race.

As far as swag, we received a long sleeved green t-shirt.  There were also lots of arthritis-themed vendors around who had goodies, but other than a t-shirt we didn't receive anything.  Awards were given for overall and age group winners.

Course Overview

The race starts at the corner of Heinz Field on North Shore Drive.  The road is really wide, so it's perfect for the start of a race!  

Mile one takes you down and around PNC Park, then onto River Avenue.  There is a slight downhill at this point, and the Steel City Road Runners hosted the first water stop right outside of their building.  I hit mile one in 8:08.  I tried to start conservatively, but my legs felt really heavy.  Not really a good sign, but I knew I could power through for two more miles.

For the second mile, you continue down River Avenue, and turn onto the River Trail at the 16th Street/Heinz Lofts parking lot.  I really like that this race has a separate path for the out and back portion.  The river trail is one of my favorite places to run as well, with a great view of downtown and the river.  My second mile time was 7:36, and I was still hurting!

The final mile continues on the river trail, past  PNC Park and Heinz Field.  The only noticeable hill is right before you hit mile 3 - when the trail meets up with North Shore Drive.  This is a short and steep ramp, with a steep turn onto the road.  From this point, you can see the finish line ahead and it's slightly downhill.  I could feel myself slowing down in this final mile, and I finished it in 7:57.

Thanks to my mom for the picture!

Overall, the course is very flat (for Pittsburgh) with a slight downhill at the beginning and a steep hill at the end.  The course is out and back, but the "out" is on a road and "back" is on a paved trail.    My final time was 24:45, which was my third fastest 5k of the year.  I'm happy with this time since I wasn't really training for this race, and didn't feel my best.  

When I registered, I accidentally signed up as a male somehow, so I ended up in 12th place in the male 25-29 age group.  In my "real" age group, I finished in 10th.

Have you ever done a theme race?

What is your final race for the year?


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