CASA Super Hero Race (4/22/17)... and a protest

Way back in the fall, some union friends and I thought it would be fun to run a race together. We settled on the CASA Super Hero Race in April in Salem.

The day finally came, and it was pouring. Of course.

Lesly, Brad, Soren and I met up in the bib line, snapped a couple pictures, said some good lucks and ran back to our cars to hide from the rain for a bit.

We finally got out of the car, did a little warm-up lap around Riverfront Park and walked to the starting area. The rain stopped, and the sun was even poking out a bit.

We were off right on time, heading toward the bridge across the Willamette River and into Wallace Marine Park. It was basically the same course as our Thanksgiving race, except the loop in Wallace Marine was counterclockwise this time.

Brad and I ran the 10K, a double loop. Soren and Lesly ran the 5K, and we never saw them again! I sure hope they had a good time :)

I was running by feel and decided to push it a little bit. By my second lap, the sun was OUT, and I was HOT in my black T-shirt. (Should have gone with the tank!) The woman in front of me took off her shirt. I hesitated for a few moments and then said, "what the heck... let's do this!" and ripped off my shirt, too. I've never raced shirtless before, and it felt so empowering! I read a blog by an AMAZING woman who champions running in a sports bra, flaws and all.  I thought of her as I powered through the end of my race, crossing the finish line with my shirt in my hands.

A short time later, a woman finished behind me - also with her shirt off! 

I found the first woman and thanked her for doing that so I could do that - and the woman behind me could do that. GIRL POWER! I felt so strong at that moment.

So according to the official stats, I killed that race. BUT... the course was short... WAY short. My GPS had it at 5.77 miles. (A 10K is supposed to be 6.2 miles)

I finished in 52:25, a 9:04 average, which was good enough for 14/44 overall, 6/20 female and 3/6 F 40-49! YAY for small races :) ALSO - this means that of the top six finishers, three were 40-49. That's impressive.


(my official average based on the 6.2 distance was 8:28!)

The race was a fund raiser for CASA of Marion County, Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children. Everyone was incredibly nice and supportive, and aside from some minor issues when we first arrived, the whole event was great! 

Bikers Again Child Abuse was on hand volunteering at the start/finish line and also along the course. It was so wonderful to see these bikers out there teaming up for such a great cause! 

I would definitely do this little fund-raiser race again!

After, Brad and I changed into warm, dry clothes and grabbed lunch from one of the food trucks selling yummies at the finish line:

Since we were in Salem, and it was the April 22, we drove the few blocks to the capitol and joined the March for Science! I was sad to miss the giant one in Portland, but I was so glad the timing worked out that we could be part of the Salem event!

A large crowd gathered on the capitol steps.

After the rally, we took to the streets sidewalks and walked for many blocks around downtown.

It was a day filled with my favorite things: racing and resisting. Someday, hopefully I can let up on the resisting and focus on the running. But for now, political activism is my duty. #resist