Race Report: Northfield Savings Bank Flying Pig Footrace

Last Saturday, while in Vermont visiting my parents, I ran the 33rd Annual Northfield Savings Bank Flying Pig Footrace with my mom. I was excited and proud to be running in the same race with her but she insisted that I run my own race and then come back for her. I begrudgingly accepted my mom’s orders even though my legs were exhausted from hiking Camel’s Hump the day before and I would have gladly slowed my pace to run with her.

 

Saturday ended up being a great day for a race: bright, sunny (although some clouds did roll in just at the start but then just as quickly disappeared again), cool weather. Ask any one of the Vermonters I was racing with and they’d argue that last point since it was supposed to get up in to the 70s that day.

 

We walked down to Northfield’s Village Common, where the race would start and end, about an hour early to watch the kid’s 1-mile race. Watching the kids take off at the starting line, eager, smiling and determined faces, was fun. The kids did not disappoint and put in a great race effort with the first one (a girl, no less) coming across the line in just over 6 and half minutes (a mile time, I’d never be able to hit now!).


After watching the kids finish their race, we walked over to the bank and got our bibs and t-shirts. The t-shirts are really great with an awesome picture of a flying pig on the back. It is definitely one of the most fun cotton race t-shirts I’ve ever received.

 

We were called to the start line and took off, immediately up hill for approximately one-third to half a mile. On the plus side, starting up in a race is a great way to guarantee that you don’t go out too fast and I love running up hills. On the negative side, it can be a little discouraging to start out a 5K already out of breath and tired. I didn’t push too hard up the hill, letting people stream past me. I told myself to just be patient because I’d soon be passing them.

 

As we hit the top of the hill and the course flattened out, I picked up the pace and told myself, “push, it’s only three miles; it’ll be over before you know it.” My 3 mile PR is 24:xx minutes and I think I could have taken a shot at the record had I not hiked the day before and if the race hadn’t started on an incline. However, those are the circumstances of this race so I told myself that plan A was get in under 26 minutes and plan B was to at least run it under 30 minutes. I was feeling surprisingly well as I started to push the pace at the top of hill and thought, maybe I could get close to the PR.

 

 

The course took us up to the edge of the Norwich University campus before turning back toward the Village Common, crossing within 50 yards of the finish line, circling across and along the Dog River before turning back toward the Village Common and the finish line.

 

I hit mile one in 8:06 and definitely felt good. I thought I could aim for sub-8 one the next mile so I picked it up just a hair. As I was heading down hill, toward Village Common the first time, I let gravity take over and sped down it, passing a woman in a bright blue t-shirt. Nothing remarkable about that as I was passing loads of people but I would remember her later. Not long after crossing the Dog River, along Water Street, which had little shade and the sun had come back out, I started to slow. My legs were tired. Uh oh.

 

Up to that point, I had been focusing on catching the person in front of me, passing them and then picking out my next victim. Now, it was just a matter of survival. I told myself, “just hang on, I was almost to Mile two and the turn around, just don’t let anyone pass.” But the turn around was a long time coming and I knew I was in some trouble. I hit the second mile in 8:12.

 

A PR was out of the question but I could still eke in under 26 minutes if I just kept up the pace.

 

Luckily after the turn around, I had something to distract me from the cement-like legs – I knew I would pass-by mom. I looked and looked. Nope, that’s not her. Oh, that could be…nope not her. Oh wait, there she is. And there she was, coming down the street, head down a little, a little red in the face but still moving forward. She perked up when she saw me and me high-fived. “Go Momma!!” I shouted. It was one of my favorite race moments ever (beaten, of course by the banana hand-off from my first marathon).

 

Well, now I had to finish this race, no more distractions just one foot in front of the other and repeat as quickly as possible. Just as I spotted to turn up ahead, I heard someone getting closer and closer, both their footfalls and their breathing. It didn’t sound good and I really wanted to hold them off but I just couldn’t find any pep in my legs and I knew I wanted to save a little bit for the kick to the finish line. That’s when blue-shirt passed me.

 

“Argh” I wanted to scream. I had thundered past her on the downhill and here she was, slow and steady coming back. For a second, I thought about just running all out, screw the kick at the end, but my legs weren’t interested in responding. I had found a groove and they didn’t want to go any faster. A little disappointed, I let her go without a fight and just focused on getting to the finish.

I made the final turn, a tiny up and over the bridge and gave it my all toward the finish line. I couldn’t find any speed to pass anyone but I finished strong and it felt good. To my surprise, the clock read 25:34 as I crossed the finish line. I thought I had slowed more than that on the last 1.1 miles (total 9:15) but I had managed to hold on for a sub-26 finish.

 

I quickly, grabbed some water, waved at my dad and Mike and then started back for Mom. I really wanted to run part of the race with her. I met up with her with about a quarter mile to go and ran it in with her. She said she was tired and that this was tougher than she thought it would be. Regardless, I was so proud of her as we ran in to the finish line. “This is my MOM!” I wanted to shout. Of course, I didn’t shout that but I couldn’t contain my smile and hoped that it was good enough to show everyone how happy I was to run that race with her.

I ended up finishing 67th overall and 8th in my age group with an official time of 25:33 an average pace of 8:14.

 

 

Great race. Great company. Great day. Thanks Mom! xoxo

 

Pros:

• Great (cotton) t-shirt
• Cool weather (for a Virginian)
• Fun festivities before and after
• Great small town race