Yesterday was a fantastic Thanksgiving! Started the day off with a Turkey Trot here in Crystal Lake at Lippold Park. Ran as fast as I could out of the box and regretted it later. Initial pace was way too fast(7:30 mi.). Finally started to back off once I realized my heart rate was up around the 175 bpm area. Averaged that the rest of the way and finished with a personal best time of 29:13. I know it won’t show that in the records as the result because of the huge backup in the chute at the finish but my Garmin Forerunner 305 has the proof I need. You can check out the stats on my TrainingPeaks page(see link below). Figured out that that was a reaffirmation that I don’t want to do the short course in Triathlons as a habit. I definitely prefer the slower pace and lower heart rate. I know I will have to endure a lot of that in speed training but I don’t think my body really likes it at all.

After the race I headed to the gym to shower and change before taking off to do my part to pay forward some of what has been given to me. The Crystal Lake Chamber of Commerce, Crystal Lake Food Pantry and the Crystal Lake Jaycees hold the Community Harvest every year on Thanksgiving morning. We take all of the food donated to the pantry for the holidays from local food drives at the schools and local business and with at least a few hundred local volunteers the food gets sorted and boxed for distribution. A large chunk of the food is taken by the Jaycees to distribute to families that have been chosen for the Share a Christmas project(of which I am a past Chairman – True honor).  The pantry collected over 68,000 lbs of food that will help them feed the needy throughout the winter and into early spring. It was also great seeing old friends that I don’t get to see so often.

And of course I did spend a wonderful evening with my family chowing on a fantastic meal. I even made a little money at the game table later! All in all it was a great day.