It's A Wonderful Run!

Saturday afternoon I ran in the annual, It’s A Wonderful Run, in Seneca Falls, NY. It’s a play on words from the classic holiday movie, It’s A Wonderful Life. A wonderful story about George Baily a beloved man in the town of Bedford Falls, NY. Rumor has it that the man who wrote the story of It’s a Wonderful Life stopped through Seneca Falls, NY on his way to New York City and started writing the story after spending a few days. There are many similarities to the two towns and the people of Seneca Falls love this claim to fame. 

Seneca Falls is also home to the National Women’s Hall of Fame and is the home of the women’s suffragist movement. Something that is near and dear to my heart. A few years ago before the race a friend of mine and I arrived early so we could tour the Hall of Fame. Taking the tour and reading about some incredible women can empower you in so many ways…but I digress.

This past Saturday was the annual 5k which starts after sun down at 4:40 pm on the bridge, where George Baily jumped in the icy cold river to save Clarence. The only lights that guide you on the course are the street lamps and the holiday lights that decorate the homes along the course. The citizens of Seneca Falls come out and line the streets to cheer the runners as they pass by on the course. There are parties on front lawns with fire pits, music and fun. Everyone, runners and walkers included are having a great time.

This year Saturday was a very cold day with temperatures not even hitting 30 degrees. However, that didn’t stop over 4000 runners from wanting to run the 3.1-mile distance many dressed up in costume (I wore my usual running clothes, but did add a snowman headband to be festive. It has been four years since the last time I ran this race and this year I wasn’t going to miss it. As soon as I knew the date I marked it on my calendar, registered and made sure keep the weekend free (A special shout out and thank you to a few co-workers who traveled to some work events for me).

As I stated earlier I was one of 4058 runners who crossed the bridge to start the race. I recently checked out my official time and I was so excited. I finished the course in 35:48, which was four minutes faster than my time in 2012. I finished 1,842 overall which is in the top 45% of the running field. In my age group I finished 127 out of 291, which is the top 43.6% of that group. And finally out of the 2,558 women who completed the race I finished 1113^th which is the top 45.5% of the group.

To some this may not seem like a big deal but when I have finished dead last on some courses finishing in the top half of the field and feeling like I could keep running is incredible! Every day is a new adventure. This journey has not been easy but seeing these results it has been worth it!!