As this is a running as well as a food blog – you get to (from time to time) hear me ramble about running, so settle in. 🙂

Earlier in the year, when I was injured and not running, I signed up for the Bolton Road Race.  As many runner’s will tell you – those who can’t run…. sign up for races.  I don’t know why we do it – maybe to make us feel better and give us a glimmer of hope that whatever injury or ailment we are currently dealing with will not last forever (although many times it feels that way).

Well, I am back to running and more importantly training for the Amica Half Marathon in June BUT I have just started doing “quality workouts”, so I was by no means ready to give this race an “Olympic Effort”.

Luckily I was told that this was going to be a quality workout session – phew – until I read the workout plan.

1 mile warm up
drills
1×2 at easy pace
1×2 at marathon pace
1×1 at threshold pace

This might not seem like a problem – I mean I ran a similar workout on the track last Sunday – BUT the last mile, the threshold pace that I was to run – seemed (and was) difficult and nearly impossible.

Why might you ask – because the Bolton Road Race is “famous” for the hill.  I mean the tag line for the race is “Come Run The Hill”.

Connecticut is known for what I like to call “rolling hills” and this race has a doozy and it’s at the end and (from the rumors that I overheard before the race started) the grade is from 12% to 40%.

BUT – I just wanted to get back out there – to see my friends – and to get that “race feeling” that runners get when surrounded my like minded people.  I mean how many others do you know that would drive to Bolton, CT on a Sunday afternoon – to run up “THE HILL”.  Well – about 300 this past Sunday.

I had never run the Bolton Road Race until Sunday but I have heard about it for years – it’s a really grass roots race, put on to support the Bolton Boosters and run expertly by Dani Kennedy – whom I have never met but silently cursed up that hill.

But what did I have to lose – I know I am working toward something bigger but nerves still took over.  I wanted to do well, I wanted to run fast but I knew I had to stick to the plan.

And I am glad I did – the Bolton Road Race course is a figure 8 loop and there are some pretty steep declines, even one before the hill, but I kept telling myself over and over – stick to the plan, stick to the plan.

And for the most part I did.  I am not going to lie – the hill sucked and I did not hit my pace for the last mile but I ran up the entire hill.  I did not stop and once I saw Dani – asking her if she was the race director and she confirming – I knew I had nothing but sweet sailing down hill to the finish.

The time was not what I wanted BUT I got back out there and saw some great people in the process.  I “speak” to them often on Facebook throughout my non racing months but it was great catching up and knowing that for the next couple of months I will be seeing some, if not all of them, often.

And really isn’t that what running is about – a sense of community.

So – would I run the Bolton Road Race again next year.  Definitely – the hill and I have some unfinished business.