Running right down the middle of Yonge Street

I did it. I accomplished my third 10K run in less than two years, finishing with my best time yet -- by far. 1:09:37.4. That's 69 minutes! I was targetting a 70-minute finish, so let me tell you, right about now, I'm pretty proud of myself.

It was an amazing running experience -- and a very different one from running at the zoo. At the Zoo Run 10K, the number of runners is capped around 2,500. Here, it's not. So there were more than 12,000 runners, running down Yonge Street.

At the zoo, after the first kilometre or so, the pack spreads out and you're pretty much on your own -- well at least you are when you're nearer to the back of the pack. At the Sporting Life run, you are always amongst the pack. It is simply a sea of people running straight down Yonge Street -- from north of Eglinton to Richmond, and then across Richmond and over to Fort York to the finish line.

And yet, it was such a rush. So much so that in a way, it seems like a bit of a blur to me. I just ran. And waved to Ryan and the kids who were cheering me on around the 1K mark. And found some friends standing around 3K hoping to catch a glimpse of me (and they did because I started smiling and waving madly). And looked around at the stores as I went by. And looked down and realized, "hey, I'm running right along the yellow centre line -- and I'm at Yonge and Dundas!"

And before I knew it, I was passing Yonge and Bloor and passing Yonge and Dundas and passing the Scotiabank Theatre on Richmond. I was just running. And enjoying every minute of it.

I felt like I was flying. I had no idea how fast I was going, but it felt faster than I'd ever gone before (and it was!). I messaged Ryan as I stopped to walk around 4K and then again around 7K so that he'd know where I was. He and the kids wanted to see me near the finish line, but it's a little more complicated with this race than at the zoo which is contained in a small space.

When I messaged him, I had no idea how long I'd be running, but it didn't feel like it had been very long.

And then, I was there. I could see the finish line, Ryan and the kids were yelling "Go mommy go" and I found a new speed I didn't know I had.

It felt incredible. And, I have to admit, although I complained about having to get up early (I was up at 5:45 a.m.), drag the kids out of bed (we got them up at 6:30 a.m.) and get my butt to Yonge and Eglinton before 8 a.m. on a Sunday, I may just consider doing this run one more time next year.

But first up is the Zoo run one more time this fall. Austin wants to do the kid 500 metre run that follows the 10K, so I figure if we're going to go for that -- I might as well run another 10K.