Monument Avenue 10K

The first race I ever ran was the Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K.  I have now run it four times. A 10K is 6.2 miles and it is a good place to start if you are very determined, otherwise I would say start with a 5K. You can work your way up from 3.1 to 6.2 pretty easily.

This race will forever hold a special place in my heart because it was my first race. I believe it is also turning into the largest race on the east coast. This past spring there were over 41,000 runners and walkers signed up for it! There were SO many people out there! I had been running a lot over the fall and winter and was more ready for this race than I realized I was. I set a PR this past spring in this race, even with all those people! I did a LOT of ducking and weaving and ran my heart out to set that PR.

There are several things that make this race so great.
1-The YMCA training team. Training starts several weeks before the event and the coaches help you along the way. The day of the race they are out there as well, cheering you on. There is this one coach, I can't remember his name, but he has a very distinct "holler" that he belts out all through training and you can hear it coming down the road on race day. Not only do they run with you, but they also teach you about hydration, shoes, stretching, all those little things that beginners don't necessarily think about.
2-It's a fast, flat course. Basically this race goes up one side of Monument Avenue and down the other. It is a very old street in Richmond with beautiful houses, big old trees, and large grassy medians. On the medians there are different groups who cheer you on, perform dances, and play music. It is one big party the whole way.
3. Costumes! This race has a costume contest you can enter and people get VERY creative. I've seen pirate ships, curling teams, Pac Man, the squirrel from Ice Age...people come up with some crazy and creative stuff.
4. The expo. For a 10K, this expo is HUGE and there is a lot of stuff to check out.

If you are in the Richmond area, or even on the east coast, I suggest you check out this great race!

Back in 2008. I was such a newbie. We were soaking wet because it rained on us, but I was so happy :-)

2009-Cory ran with me!



 I also ran for one of my students who had leukemia at the time. She completed her treatment this past summer!

2010-Cory ran with me again! It was REALLY cold that year.

 But he hurt his knee and was in a lot of pain so I had to force a smile out of him. Literally.

2011-This past year when I set my PR!

 I ran for Chris this past year, a man I admired and will deeply miss.

Have any of you ever run this race? What did you think of it?