2011 Puzzle Run

The Puzzle Run for autism is one of our favorite races of the year! 2011 marked their third annual 5k/10k in Speer Park, Oakland near Orlando. Aside from the fact that this race benefits a really important cause - more than one in 100 American children are now impacted by this condition - the race boasts one of the area's most scenic and varied courses, is really well organized and one of the few 5ks that still provides dri-fit shirts with the registration packets:). For me, Labor Day signifies the beginning of my favorite events of the year and the Puzzle Run is a perfect way to get back into the race season groove!

We spend Labor Day in Orlando every year and we had to get up at 5:30 a.m. to make the race in time. This year we hadn't gotten in until past 1 a.m. the night before so it was even more of a struggle than usual. It was much cooler than recently though which was a huge relief!

After a bit of a congested start, the sun came up as we started to run and there was gorgeous scenery to enjoy at every turn...

During the race I was so thrilled to see Kitzzy, one of my favorite bloggers! She did the 10k and is currently preparing for her second marathon, the Space Coast Marathon. Check out her fabulous blog here!

I pushed hard and was really pleased to come in at 31:54, a tiny bit faster than last year and 7th out the 37 ladies in my age category!! Mike was a superstar and placed 20th overall!

I loved the race bling too and and now I feel like I've earned at least one or two of those poolside cocktails that I'm going to be forced to drink over the weekend...:)