This Week's 5k Run For Another Great Cause - Transverse Myelitis

Run 4 Mike 5k

A few months ago a good friend of ours who knew I liked to run asked if I would do a 5k run for Transverse Myelitis. Her 30 year old son was diagnosed with TM a year or two ago when he woke up one morning paralysed. He eventually was able to walk again, but TM is a very scary and unpredictable disease of the spinal cord. There is no know cause or cure right now and it can leave patients permanently disabled or worse since it can be fatal.

I agreed to race in honor of her son and raise money for research to help find a cure for this terrible disease. The run was called the Run 4 Mike, named after Mike L. Jezdimir, who was diagnosed with TM in the 1960's. You can read more about the Mike L. Jezdimir Transverse Myelitis Foundation here.
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It was a beautiful day and a perfect course on paved trails in Veteran's Park in Alabaster, Alabama about 30 or 40 minutes south of Birmingham. The course was a couple of loops in one part and then an out and back the last mile which had a few more rolling hills, but nothing too bad. I've been using these 5k's as speed work since I haven't done real speed work in years. I took off as fast as I could and was in the overall lead for almost two miles before a guy passed me. I thought it was pretty cool to be behind the cyclist who was showing us where to go with no other runners ahead of me, temporarily at least.

Me with Mike

When we hit the hills around 2 1/2 miles another guy passed me, but I held on to be the third person to cross the finish line and the first female overall. I forgot to start my watch and I'm not sure but I think the time when I crossed the finish line was 22:34 or something, but I'm really not sure. All I know is my first mile was 7:24 minute mile. I felt pretty strong the entire way and only briefly felt nauseous on the hills, but it went away before I crossed the finish line.

Several of our friends were walking the 5k course for Team Daniel and wore white t shirts and white ball caps with a blue ribbon for Transverse Myelitis. I love the fringe! I would've worn one, but I think I would have gotten it all sweaty by the time I finished the run. I wore the same Lulumon tank that I wore in the Rumpshaker 5k because it fits so well, holds everything in and I love that it has wider straps that crisscross in the back. They don't dig into my shoulders and the material wicks so no sweaty wetness. I think I'm going back to Lulumon's and purchase another tank similar to this if they still carry them. I bought the one I wore during this run a couple of years ago.

Overall, a great race for a great cause. Maybe next year I will form a team for the Autism 5k (which was the one I did last weekend here) in honor of my son. The Murph and I were trying to come up with a cool Aspergerish team name but couldn't think of anything cool. My suggestions were Team Asparagus or Team Hamburgers, but the Murph said nobody would get it. Any good ideas?

Go Team Daniel!

More pictures of the fun from Facebook page of Alabama Transverse Myelitis Awareness.

5K Run For Autism

I haven't done very many 5k races the past several years, but now it seems like I'm making up for it. I did the Rumpshaker 5k for colon cancer last Saturday, 5k for autism today in honor of the Boy and next Saturday there's the 5k for Transverse Myelitis, a spinal cord disease that our friend, D's son was diagnosed with a couple of years ago.

I hadn't planned on running as hard as I did last Saturday because my legs have been sore most of the week and I didn't think it would be a good idea. That was a good thing because it was freezing this morning and I don't run well in cold weather and the course wasn't clearly marked so half the runners missed the little .2 (?) mile loop and half the runners did it. It was all for a good cause so I really didn't care what my time was anyway and it didn't change the order of my age group since me and the second place girl both missed the added loop and the third place person was my friend L, who did the loop but was about a minute behind us on the course before the loop. Our times would have been about a minute slower, but the order we came in would have been the same.

It didn't matter. I'm not even sure if they gave out awards to the top winners anyway. I think this is the first year they did the 5k. In the past they just did the 2 mile walk. The most important thing is the fundraising. I'm not sure how much money was raised, but I hope it was a lot.

I'm really glad my friend L decided to do the race too. I wish more people had participated in the 5k. There were far more people doing the 2 mile walk than the 5k.

This is one cool DJ! I loved his hat.

Great Bar-B-Q although it was too early for me to eat something that heavy. Jim N Nicks is one of my favorites. I did grab a cup of coffee though!

Next weekend is the same. I'm doing the 5k for the cause more than to race. I do hope the course is marked better though!

L and I ran another 3 miles after the 5k for a total of 6 miles. Then I did 40 minutes on the spin bike at the gym. No, I didn't ride my tri bike. At least not today. Probably a good thing considering my asthma.

It got much warmer and ended up being a warm, beautiful, yet pollen filled day. The yellow stuff is thick on the cars and probably in my lungs too. Even the cats are sneezing!

Adams Heart Run

Saturday was the annual Adam's Heart Run held at Oak Mountain State Park right outside Birmingham, Alabama.  There was a choice of distances - 5k, 10k, or 10 miles.  The last time I did this race was probably around 9 years ago and I chose the 5k distance back then.   This time I thought the 10k choice would be better since I haven't run any 10k races in years.  The Vulcan run 2003 was probably the last time I ran the 10k distance.  All my races lately have been either 5k, half marathon or marathon distances.

I mentioned it to L, aka the running nazi, and she was all in.  She even suggested we might want to do the 10 miler.  I thought about it for about half a second and then convinced her that the 10k option would be better since

 1.  it's a very hilly course
 2. we just finished running 13.1 miles at Mercedes half marathon less than a week before.
 3.  My calves still aren't totally healed.
 4.  Mentally, I just didn't like the idea of "racing" 10 miles.  6.2 miles seemed more manageable to me.

L finally agreed.  The 10k distance was it.

On race morning we decided to meet at the park around 8am for the 9am start.  I was running about 10 minutes late so when I got to the park I tried to call her.  My cell phone wouldn't call out without the area code added so I tried to memorize her number as I dialed it with the area code.  No answer so I left a message not realizing I had dialed the number wrong.  Opps!  Sorry, whoever I called.

Disregard message!

I went to register and didn't see L anywhere so I walked back to my car and decided to try to call again.  This time the speed dial worked, but L's husband answered her cell phone because she had forgotten and left it at home.  I realized I had just woken him up.  Opps again!   He told me she should already be at the park so I went back toward registration looking for her.

This time I found her.  She had been looking for me too.  It was a fun race, the ground was a little wet but the rain had cleared up from the night before.  I wanted to do around 50 minutes, preferably under 50 but missed it by a little over a minute.  My total time was 51 minutes and some odd seconds.  I placed third in my age group only 20 seconds slower than the 2nd place finisher!

L did good too and now she's suddenly super motivated and said we should do a race EVERY weekend so we can get faster AND get up a 5am on Tuesdays to run with the "hill" running group.

Hills!

5am!

What have I done??

While the weekend races would be fun, I think I'm going to have to pass on the 5am Tuesday morning "hill" run.


All Images from Birmingham Track Club