Pennypacker Park Cross Country Open 5k Recap (21:00)
I wanted to run the Pennypacker Park Cross Country 5k open for a while. Unfortunately, due to work, it’s usually not a race I can make work with my schedule.
This year, it was a couple of hours earlier, but to get my run in as well as the race, I ended up running 7 miles beforehand and then used the last 5k as a hard effort and fast finish. I wasn’t worried about time since it was a cross country race. The course itself was muddy but relatively flat. It’s a fun course that Haddonfield High School and most of South Jersey uses.
I got to the Pennypacker Park Cross Country 5k around 7:30, started my run and got to the start around 8:55. If you’ve never run a cross country race, they typically start in “boxes,” and it funnels down into a narrow path. That’s exactly what we did. I chatted with a few people and then we were off. I wasn’t sure how my legs would feel. During the start, I got boxed in and got flashes of college racing. It does make me miss cross country!
We headed down Pennypacker Park and towards the first mile. I’ve run hundreds of miles in Pennypacker Park so I’m relatively familiar with the terrain and course.
Around mile 1, I passed another female. I hit the first mile in 6:40, which I was happy with. I had no idea of my place. We ran down a hill to the lower part of Pennypacker Park. It was slightly flooded but nothing unmanageable. It was narrow and hard to pass anyone. I felt better than I thought and caught a couple of men.
I hit the mile 2 of the Pennypacker Park Cross Country 5k in 6:50 and was pleasantly surprised. I kept plugging along and found myself feeling better than anticipated.
The third mile of the Pennypacker Park Cross Country 5k and Pennypacker course wraps around the finish and heads back. It’s hard to see the finish line and know your race is only 2/3rd done. In fact, as I got to mile 2.5, I saw plenty of people were already done!
I kept plugging along during the third mile and went around the fields. At the end, it was a mad dash between a friend and myself and we crossed the finish of the Pennypacker Park Cross Country 5k in 21 minutes exactly. I was happy for a solid hard effort at the end of 10 miles.
Pennypacker Park Cross Country 5k Thoughts:
I’m happy with my efforts. While it’s nowhere near a PR on a cross country course, it’s fun to race that. I do hope to run the Club Nationals in Lehigh in December. I’m glad I was able to run the Pennypacker Park Cross Country 5k and it’s a nice race if you’ve never run cross country or just want too.
Questions for you:
Have you run a cross country race?
What’s a race you’ve wanted to do before?