Ten Reasons I love the BIG 10 10K {Curing #Notivation Link Up}

Hey everyone!
We have been home for 2 days and I'm already missing Chi Town! One great way to bring back those good vibes of the Windy City is to write a little bit about the awesome race we participated in! I'm linking up with Mal Smiles this Tuesday for a Curing #NOtivation Link Up. Through instagram I found out she also had a friend that was at the race :) Alex and I have some great memories to add to 2013 and some pretty funny stories.

One humorous story happened to Alex while he was running and he told me about it afterwards and I nearly spit out my bottled water ;) He reached out for a cup of liquid (he thought it would be water) during the race and it turns out it was Gatorade. He and I agree that really the only thing that you can handle during a run is water and that warm sugary Gatorade just doesn't quench your thirst. Well he ended up spilling it down his entire shirt but that isn't even the funny part. He had been talking to a guy during the race that was running alongside of him. After Alex spilled the Gatorade and made the comment "Oh I hate Gatorade, it just doesn't quench your thirst and it is too sugary" they started talking about their jobs. Alex shared what he did for a living and then asked what he did for a living and the guy surprisingly replied, "Oh I work for Gatorade!" HAHA!! uh OH! Alex was shocked and I have a smirk on my face just typing about. But the guy brushed it off and agreed that when you are running it isn't the best when you are expecting to get a cup of water and he agreed that "Propel" flavored water is a lot better before or after a race. But that is a story we had fun sharing with our friends and family :)
BUT on to the TOP 10 LIST...

10 // This is only the 2nd year for the Big 10 race and they have more than doubled in size from the first one. There were 14,000 Participants!!




9 // 10Ks are a great challenge for me and a big accomplishment. I thought I would never be able to do even 4 continuous miles without stopping and now I am completing 6.4

8 // The race is broadcast on the Big Ten Network and Alex's brother recorded it for us so that we could possibly get a glimpse of ourselves at the race.

Photo from race day on the BTN. Check out that time!! 

7 // It was very well organized. I guess from a organization that televises sporting events this was to be expected but the process was very smooth. We didn't have to pick up our registration packets because they were mailed to us. They had "corrals" set up for a wave start based on your 10k time you entered when you signed up. Alex and Tim were in Corral B...and I was back in Corral I ;) Oh and the course was as long as it said it was..not like that sham 80's run I participated in that was only 2.4 miles instead of 3.2

6 // The Fans! It was great to be a part of a huge event that compiled different schools from around the country. Since Nebraska was one of the farthest schools from Chicago and they have only been in the BIG 10 for a couple years there wasn't a lot of people from the Cornhusker state. As I was waiting for the race to start they were announcing all the different schools and people would shout out when their school was mentioned. They said "Nebraska" and one kid next to me said "They don't even go here!!" HAHA! I couldn't help but laugh at the Mean Girls movie reference and the fact that we weren't really welcomed ;) He looked at me and said "oh I'm sorry.." and I told him that is was totally fine because the Nebraska shirt was just a cover up and I was an Iowa girl at heart ;)

Husker Crossbones

5 // You can look at your results and standings among others. I got 5823rd with a time of  1:07:15 (WOOT WOOT!) I told my friend that I got first in the Nebraska 5ft and under division though ;) Alex got 1085th place with a time of 48:53

4 // You get a Medal for participating and the guys that hand it to you even do a little bow as they present it to you..Made me chuckle! I felt like Shawn Johnson a little bit ;) It is a great souvenir that Alex and I can cherish on our 50th wedding anniversary when we are no longer capable of running a 10K

3 // From the Shirts to the free sunglasses, there was a lot of fun stuff that race participants got. I love the BTN draw string bags! I felt like the race entry more than paid for itself!

on the far left is a "bag" water bottle to take on trail runs!

2 // The Fan Fest Tailgate! One Free Beer and Brat for participants and a great atmosphere to chill at after the long run. All of the school mascots were dancing around and there was a 40 meter sprint and a field goal kicking area which I completely embarrassed myself at!

Now keep in mind I had never done this before..And like Alex says in the video, I'm a dancer and although I'm pretty graceful I don't have the best coordination when you add a ball into the mix. 

For a girl that doesn't like beer, it didn't taste too bad!

GOooo BIG Red!!

 AND..The #1 reason I love the Big 10K ..Well that's easy, It was in CHICAGO!! By far my favorite City in the USA. Only a 7 hour drive from Omaha and the last time I was there was about 4 years ago. The race was right along Lakeshore Drive with Lake Michigan in view. The weather was perfect because it was a little overcast and the city atmosphere was just perfect! I mean look at these great pictures after the race with the skyline in the background! 

It's taking all I got to Flex!

Exhausted after the race...Hold me up Jack!

So next year I highly recommend you join us for the BIG 10K because I'm going to make it a tradition in our family :) visit BTN BIG10 for more info!