Lucky Charm Race

On Sunday my friend Heather and I ran the Lucky Charm 10K. This race offered both a 5K and a 10K and when Scott found out we were running the 10K he asked whyDo you get the same medal for both? Yes you do, I said! Then why would you run the further distance, he asked.

I can find a 5K around here like every other weekend but there seems to be fewer 10K's offered, especially ones that actually offer a medal.  I'm okay with running a 5K and not receiving a medal, but a 10K distance deserves a medal, don't you think? 


When we got there, that atmosphere was already fun and festive. It was nice seeing everyone dressed in green and some in costumes! As far as the weather, we couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day to run.

Packet pick up was available starting on Friday but we chose to just pick our stuff up right before the race. I registered for this race back in January and at the time of registration I ordered a size small race shirt. When I picked up my bib and shirt on Sunday, they no longer had any smalls left. How does this happen?  They gave me a medium instead, but turns out that ended up being a mistake in my favor because the shirts ran pretty small and the medium one fit perfect! I actually really love these shirts and the material is SO soft. They are just like the shirts that you get from Gone For A Run. At packet pick up I got to seen Ana and her son!


In real life, this jacket I am wearing (from the Tinkerbell half in California), looked a bit more green ( I knew it wasn't really green-green), but enough that it was a shade of blue green. Of course now that I look at it in this picture, it just looks blue! O well.  I was unsure what the weather was actually going to be like and it was a bit breezy walking to the race from the car, so I kept the jacket on. I decided to race with it on too.  It was a good decision in the beginning because it was a bit chilly running by the water, but after that, keeping it on was a BAD choice!


The 10K race is basically an out and back, running up one side of town and coming back on the other. It is actually a really nice, scenic course. We passed the capitol building on our way. I also saw Ana and her son again on the course cheering for runners! 

I am proud of myself for starting off slow on this race. I usually start off way too fast and then am drained by the last half of the race. But turns out my slow pace just continued. I didn't end up speeding up.  My legs were feeling super tight, but I knew that I would feel this way for the first few miles and then they would loosen up like they normally do on a run.  They didn't end up loosening up till half way through mile 4!   Even though my legs felt better, I did not gain any speed!


At one point in the course we looped through a little park and then made our way down near the water. I am not kidding you when I say a flock of seagulls literally grazed my head. I am NOT a fan of birds to begin with and to have like 50 of them flying right in front of me and over my head was insane.  I was actually trying to get my phone out to take a picture when I saw a professional photographer take a photo of me doing so. I must have looked like a hot mess. Can't wait to see what those race photos look like..haha.  (by the way, I ended up looking back while I was running to get this photo once the seagulls dispersed)

This course was advertised as a flat course, which it mostly was except for two spots. There was a slight hill at the half way mark,  which I sort of did not mind because at that point I was looking forward to the downward portion to hopefully gain some momentum. The second hill was going back up into town after running by the water, which I was kind of wondering how we were getting back up there and figured there was going to be a hill.


I took this picture after the race and realize now that I did not capture the complete incline. It  wasn't a big deal, but just not something I was happy about seeing at the end of mile 5 of a 10K race.

The finish line was up the incline and around the corner.



I was not sick for this race, nor was I injured, yet I earned one of my slowest finish times for a 10K race.  All I can say is I was over dressed and under trained. That's it. There are no excuses. It was a beautiful day and a great course overall.


Afterwards we were treated to green bagels, and cups of Lucky Charms.  There were also Jimmy John sandwiches but the line was too long to wait in and I wanted to go meet my friend.


We then found a seat to watch the the festivities continue with the St. Patrick's day parade. The atmosphere was so festive and fun and it was a great way to spend the afternoon.  I would actually consider this race again in the future.  -M


We are linking up with the gals from TOTR.

29 comments:

  1. What a fun, festive race. It sounds like you know what went wrong in terms of not being able to perform your best, and if you chose to run this race again in the future then hopefully you'll do better on the course now that you've experienced it.

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  2. That's such a cute race shirt and medal!! Sometimes those races happen, and it just makes the great races so much better!

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    1. Yes, I am very happy with the race swag! The medal is a spinner too!

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  3. Congrats on your race! A hill at the end of a 10k just seems mean. The race I did this weekend had 5k and 10k option but neither had medals. I choose the 5k because I didnt feel like I was ready to "race" a 10k.

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  4. I'm glad you had so much fun at the race in Harrisburg! It was fun seeing pictures. I know exactly what hill you mean and it IS steep. Try running it at mile 25 of the Harrisburg Marathon!! That used to be part of the course! Up that hill, across the bridge to City Island to the finish. Now the course ends on Second Street so it's more of a "Party" atmosphere.

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    1. I'm glad we didn't have to run across that bridge. When you ran over it did you stay on the walkway?

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  5. Congrats on the 10k! Looks like a gorgeous day. 10ks are pretty rare around here too these days. Wow that's a very green bagel!

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  6. Sounds like a fabulous way to spend the day! 10ks are rather rare here, too, and I don't know of any that you get a medal for -- outside of one, that's really hilly & always hot & you earn that medal!

    I have definitely been overdressed for many races -- I just hate being cold before & after -- it always sucks.

    But you got out there & did it & you got to enjoy sunshine! Right about now I'd like to be overdressed. It was soooooooo cold yesterday! Ridiculously cold for March. But at least it was sunny.

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    1. Yea, I hate being chilly at the start of a race too so I usually end up being over dressed and then regret it later.

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  7. Congratulations! It was a gorgeous day for a race, but that wind was really cold!! We were wearing layers and were still cold.

    I'm glad you enjoyed it! it really is one of the most scenic races we have in Harrisburg.

    My son is already demanding we do the 5K next year, so if you come again, we will see you there!

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    1. I didn't even notice any wind (maybe a slight breeze by the water on the way up) but maybe that's because I kept my jacket on the entire race..haha! I am very much considering running the 5K next year. I'll have to check out the course. Does it still run down by the water and up that incline?

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  8. I always say people that choose courses with includes in the middle or end of a race should be poked with hot sticks. The worst.
    That medal is super cute! & yes, I think anything over a 5k deserves a medal.
    That green bagel - fun!!!! Perfect this year St. patty's day being on a saturday!

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    1. I love the medal! It's perfect for a 10K finish but pretty darn big for doing only a 5K (they get the same medal).

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  9. This sounds like a fun race! Sorry about the inclines, though. Love love love the green bagels and lucky charms! It’s so fun when a race really themes everything!

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    1. I actually reached for a cup thinking it was water and was surprised to see there were Lucky Charms inside!

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  10. Congrats on what sounds like a fun race! That's pretty crazy about the shirt thing though. I'm glad it worked out in your favor!! I'm guessing they ran out because they had lots of people change their minds at the table? Whatever. Hooray for soft shirts!
    And a green bagel? Hmmm.....

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    1. I asked how they ran out of shirts but the lady just shrugged her shoulders. I don't know if people were trading in shirts at packet pick up right away because I did hear her tell a man he could come back and exchange shirts at the end of the race. I'm glad there was a mix up though because the medium shirt fits perfectly!

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  11. You're right that it's hard to find a 10k with a medal. I loved BB, but it doesn't have a medal. I signed up for Bay to Breakers because it has a medal, and gosh darnit, I have a new medal display that I got for Christmas. I need to start filling it up :)

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  12. Congrats on your 10k! Looks like a nice shirt and that's great the size worked out! Sounds like a fun race.

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  13. Cute cute cute!!! I always wonder why 10K's are so rare, especially when there's already plentiful 5K's. Couldn't the runners just run the looped courses twice ? ;-)

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    1. Hmmm, I don't think I would like a 10K where we would run the 5K course twice. I think I actually did that for my very first 5K. I much prefer an out and back but hey, sometimes beggers can't be choosy, right?

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  14. Looks like a great race! I've noticed that it seems like runners really get festive for the St. Patricks Day races and I love that! It just makes the race way more fun in my opinion. 10K races are also super rare around here as well.

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    1. Oh my , runners were very festive and so were all the spectators too!

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