Bolder Boulder 2010

Yesterday, Travis and I participated in the 32nd Annual Bolder Boulder 10K race. As Travis pointed out yesterday, the name of the race makes absolutely no sense. I definitely agree, but whatever. The race always takes place on Memorial Day in Boulder (obviously) and serves as a tribute to past and present soldiers, as well. It's America's largest 10K. This year there were 52,000 participants! That's A LOT of people. As I pointed out to Travis on Sunday, that's a little more than the amount of people who attended the almost-sold-out Rockies game that day. Add in all of the spectators and volunteers, and that is a whole big mess of people all over Boulder. The race is so well organized, though, that it runs smoother than most other road races I've participated in. We chose to take advantage of the transportation system run by Denver's RTD. $7 round-trip per person and we didn't have to fight the traffic or the parking!

Travis and I both did well. My goal was to break 50 minutes, which I fell short of by a little less than a minute. However, technically I ran 6.35 miles rather than 6.2 (according to my GPS watch) because of all the weaving between people I did. I think if I had been in one of the beginning waves and wasn't constantly passing people I definitely would have had an official time under 50 minutes. Next time! Travis did fantastic in his first 10K. I think his plan was to just run how he felt like running. He said he could have gone much harder because he had a lot left at the end. It's hard to pace well when you don't know what to expect! Along the course there were bands, people throwing marshmallows for runners to catch, Jell-O shots, bacon, and a lot of other fun nonsense. Dani and Jerad ran, too, and they took advantage of the Slip-n-Slide in someone's front yard. It's definitely a fun race! Travis even sheepishly admitted to me last night that he enjoyed the experience.

After we took full advantage of the freebies at the Expo, we made our way back home to shower and take the traditional post-race nap. Later in the evening Dani, Jerad, and the German post-doc Marco joined us for a Memorial Day BBQ. All in all, a great day. Now it's back to work!