@Lakewood vs. LZ & Waukegan

We had a bittersweet day today.  While we had many successes (SEVEN Lifetime PRs and one Season PR), we also had too many women out sick and hurt. We raced first, and our small group looked good at the start.  Kelsey got out hard--much faster than she has started all season. Her gutsy first mile (6:08) will definitely help in the long term, but cost her in the final mile.  That being said, she still ran a solid race and looked very competitive against LZ's top girls. Maya was our second bee for the day.  She looked a bit too conservative in the first and second miles, but woke up to work hard in the final mile, her fastest of the day. Taylor was our third finisher, and she continues to improve each week.  Her race was gutsy, and she earned a new season PR by 4 seconds. Cynthia was back in racing action; while her time was not where she wanted it to be, it was certainly great to see her back in the race.  She worked hard to knock off some rust, and I know her effort today will help her with Warren on Saturday. Carmen also returned to racing today, rounding out our top 5. She had a great kick, and like Cynthia, needed to kick off some racing rust.  I look forward to seeing an even stronger race on Saturday from her!  

Our LPR list begins with our sixth runner, Angie.  not only did she drop 22 seconds overall, but she also had an outstanding kick from the 300 mark.  Nice work!  Alexia and Kate were our next bees. They worked in tandem for the entire race, pushing each other to greatness. Kate's efforts to stay with Lex helped her earn an 8 second LPR, and Lex's efforts to stay with Kate helped her work through an ongoing injury. Aja was not far behind with a whopping 1:05 drop to earn a new LPR of 28:04! She looked like a different woman compared to her first time on this course only a two weeks ago.  She also finished with a more confident kick.  Great work! Delilah also earned an LPR--hers was by six seconds. She, too, had an outstanding kick from the road--great job!  Elyssa dropped even more time (an impressive 46 seconds) to earn a new LPR.  She keeps improving each meet, and I can't wait to see what she can do on Warren's speedy course.  Klyde was our next finisher, and surely had the grittiest race of the day. After falling in the woods and spraining her ankle, Klyde finished thanks to her tenacity. While she was not happy with her swollen ankle or her time, her grit is to be commended. Addy, Crizaber, Karen, and Sarah M. all struggled with some tweaks today, but I know that they will come back stronger in the next race. Lindsey had two PRs in one race today. She ran an impressive first mile and PR of 9:41, and finished with an overall LPR by dropping an astounding 2:21!  I am so impressed by her progress!  Ashley, not to be outdone, also dropped an incredible 1:44 in order to earn her own new LPR.

Overall, this group worked hard, but we were unable to beat LZ or Waukegan due to extensive sickness an injury.  We need to work hard to get healthy.  Wash your hands.  Don't share water bottles. Eat right. Respect your bed time.  You can do it!