The Pie Race

My Massachusetts high
school hosts an annual 4.5 mile race for alumni called the Pie Race – so titled
because all entrants who run under 33 minutes win a pie. Today, my sister-in-law
and I ran another sort of pie race – the goal being to burn off our
Thanksgiving dessert!

The Fleet Feet Black Friday Turkey Trot 5k took us on a scenic and sunny jaunt
along the river path in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Rather
than run competitively, my goal was to enjoy the social aspect of the race and
run along with Laura in her second ever 5k event. Laura has recently caught the
running bug, and earlier this fall she also ran a 15k, something she wouldn’t
have imagined possible at this time last year.

Beyond
our own pie-burning incentive, we were also inspired by my 10-year-old nephew,
Cristian, who wanted to attempt the race (his first) as well. Cristian bumped
into a school friend at the start line, and the two boys ran together, a short
ways back from Laura and me. We watched with humor and pride as they pushed the
final yards to the finish in an all-out sprint, Cristian barely edging out his
friend for the win.

After
the race, Laura and I decided that an easy 5k wasn’t quite sufficient to undo
the heavy post-Thanksgiving feeling in our guts, so we stopped at the gym for
another 30 minute run (this time with speed intervals) on the treadmill. A
little over-the-top, perhaps, but we felt fabulous afterward – and now we’re
back home and ready for another piece of pie!