I didn’t have a whole lot of time to decompress from Cornerstone Festival before it was time to run the Peachtree Road Race. After going to bed at 2 AM (3 AM Eastern Time) for a week, I turned around and woke up at 5 AM Wed. morning to get ready for the race and drive out to the MARTA station. Thumbs up to MARTA for running frequent trains to the starting point. I was afraid I’d reach the station to find crammed trains that I would have to wait 15 minutes and then I wouldn’t be able to board them because they were full, but I was able to jump on the first train that arrived. Much like the Final Four, I was once again pleasantly surprised by MARTA.
Like in 2005, I took a disposable camera with me for the run. Of course the shots are nowhere near the quality of my D50, but I did get some fun shots from the trip.
After that, I had nothing to do but sit around and wait for the race to start. The weather was great this morning, pleasant and cool so I didn’t mind sitting around and waiting as the crowds grew.
After about an hour, we were off! Of course, the winners of the race had already finished in 28 minutes… long before I even reached the start line, but I doesn’t matter, I’m running!
I wondered if I might need these doctors by the time I reached the top of Cardiac Hill. I didn’t fare as well as I did in 2005 and the hill took a lot out of me. I really lost a lot of momentum here. Nonetheless, I picked up the pace again and cruised into Midtown.
I gained a little second wind in the last minute and soon I was at the finish line at Piedmont Park! There I picked up my prize, a Peachtree Road Race t-shirt! I don’t know what my time was, but I listen to the entire Mute Math album plus a couple songs during the run, so it took a little longer than when I ran in 2005, but it could have been worse.
I got home and after the endorphins finally wore off from the run, I crashed on the bed for several hours. The rest of the 4th of July was pretty low-key, we barbecued chicken and watched fireworks on TV, but I had my shirt and I had achieved my goal for running!