Crim 10 Mile - Flint, Michigan
The Crim 10-mile has always been a awesome race to run. It was the first 10-mile race I ever ran back in 1994. Since then, I have ran it five times prior to this year. The race is always well organized. There are race volunteers and Flint residents out and about, cheering runners on. Flint residents hand out water, or have a sprinkler setup for runners to run through along the course. Some people even hand out things like bacon, jello shots and beer!Pre-Race
I still had some time before needing to get warmed up and ready for my race. I walked around and took in the race day atmosphere. There were already a lot of people lining up along the finish line to cheer runners on. I made sure to get a good look at the finish line and where the final turn runners will make to 'hit the bricks' at the end. 'Hitting the bricks' is a phrase used at The Crim to describe the finish line, since the road the finish line is on is actually made of maroon colored bricks - very unique and very cool too.
Around 7:20am, I started to get warmed up for the race. I did a few minutes of dynamic stretches to help get the body loosened up and ready for running. I got my warm-up mile in and worked up a good sweat. I knew I had to give myself enough time to get properly warmed up so I wouldn't risk injury (learned that one the hard way in the past).
I made my way to the starting area where people were holding pace signs to help let people know where they should line up. I knew to play it safe I would line up with the 10:00 minute per mile pace group. A few minutes before the start of the race they played the national anthem. I wish more people would be respectful of our national anthem, take their hats off and close their mouths. It's only a couple minute song - it's not asking for much.
Race
The race started on time at 8:00 am. Every 30 seconds another wave of runners was let out to start the race. The waves were based on the pace groups you were lined up with. They did this to help ease the typical first mile congestion. Because I was part of the slower wave, it seemed like it took forever to get to the start line.
Once we crossed the start line, everything fell into place. I remembered the course just like I ran it a few days ago. The first 2 miles were nice and flat. I was moving along and felt ok. I knew my focus wasn't on my finish time, as it was just crossing the finish line. Things picked up a bit on the third mile. The runners I was using as pacers started to run faster, and we hit our first hill. I overheard somebody saying they thought this was the dreaded Bradley Hills. I told them this was just a primer hill for us to get ready around the 5th mile where the true Bradley Hills are.
As we got closer to mile 5, I noticed there were timing mats on the road. Usually those are only setup at the start line and finish line of the race. This was the first time after crossing the start line I had seen timing mats. As I continued on through the Bradley Hills, there were two more timing mats we ran over. I kept my mind occupied with trying to figure out why those mats were only between the fifth and sixth mile. I had to keep my mind going because the Bradley Hills were TOUGH to get through. They always have been. Keeping the mind going helped keep my body going forward.
I was so happy when I passed the sixth mile marker. I knew I had survived the Bradley Hills and the rest of the course would be easier. My spirits were picked up when I spied a house with a sprinkler setup for us to run through. This wasn't a regular sprinkler, but a homemade contraption made from pvc pipe that was about 7 feet tall with small holes drilled for water to come out. It felt very refreshing to run through. It's exactly what I needed to help regain focus and keep pushing forward towards the finish line. After I crossed the seventh mile marker, I kept reminding myself it was less than a 5K to the finish. I could do this... The eighth and ninth miles went by fast (well, not in time, but more so in my mind). When I crossed the ninth mile marker I picked up the pace to start making my way to the finish line. I knew this wouldn't be my fastest 10 mile, but I still had to finish strong. Making the final turn to the Bricks, I picked up the pace, giving everything I had left. I could hear the fans cheering for me (runner's had their names on their race bibs). As I got closer to the finish line, I noted I could hit my target goal of running just under 2 hours. I kept pushing and was able to finish in 1:50!
Post Race
It felt really good to cross the finish line and be able to stop running. I walked around for a couple minutes catching my breath. There were people handing out cold wet towels to help cool runners down with. I grabbed a couple of them and had one on my head and one on the back of my neck. I continued on through the finish corral and was handed my finisher's medal. This year's medal was really well designed. It definitely was bigger and had more detail on it than the finisher's medal from 1994.
I made sure to grab some of the post race refreshments as I continued my way through the finish line corral. I felt I had a good race because my body was exhausted, but I still had to do some type of cool down and stretching. I opted for walking a half-mile and made my way to my car. When I got to my car, I made sure to take my time and went through a good series of stretching. It felt really, really good to stretch!
Overall Comments
I've always enjoyed running The Crim 10 mile. The race is always well organized and the course is challenging (especially with the Bradley Hills!). The Crim 10 mile is one of my favorite races to run in Michigan.
Would I run this race again - Definitely!
Would I recommend this race to others - Yes!