Running the Calabasas Classic

My siblings and I

The race day finally came.  After training for the 5k with a running group for 2 months, I was ready for the big day.   I was a little bit nervous as I was going to run in the 11-14 age category and I am only 11.  My day started on a chilly morning with the sun just starting to peek its way through the clouds.  I warmed up with my track and field group that were also getting ready to run the race.  There were thousands of people watching, walking, or running the race. Two of my swimming coaches were also there running the race with me.  While I was resting from my warm-up,  I looked around, and tried to  find the start line. Since there were so many people, I couldn't even see it! There was also a DJ warming everyone up before the race.  A giant clock counted down until 8:00 am and the horn blew the start of the race. 

Coach Lara with me at the start of the race.  

We were running a large loop around the streets in our neighborhood. The week before the race, I ran the course many times for practice and felt ready for this race.  After the half way point, I got a cup of water and poured it over my head to refresh myself.  It felt so nice that I sprinted the rest of the race.  While I was running the race, my siblings were at work making a me a sign to cheer me on.   As I made my way to the finish line, my mom, sisters, and brother cheered me.

When I had finally finished, I had run the race in 23: 45: 38 and came in 5th place in my age group and 20th overall.  The fastest girl in my age category ran the race in 20:43:61.  

My sister and I after the race

Here is a video of the start of the race.

Have you ever been in a race with this many people?