On Monday, Steve and I ran the Monday Night Mile, a one-mile race that benefited the Saratoga Springs History Museum. It was the first time I’d ever raced a mile, and, well, it showed. See me all the way in the back at the start?
Photo credit: Brian Teague of Fateague Fotos.
The event, held on the harness track in this horse-crazy town, was an absolute blast. They started each pace group with the starting gate used in horse races, and an announcer narrated each race like it was a hundred-grander (“The lady in pink is holding her pace, but the lady in green looks strong today! We are in a race for first place, folks! The lady in green is ready to make her move, and there she goes!”). It made this 7:34-minute miler (didn’t I used to run 5Ks at that pace? No matter.) feel like a pro.
Photo credit: Brian Teague of Fateague Fotos.
Amy Reinink 
Was there betting? Are you a mudder? Seriously, looks fantastic!
We were joking that betting is the only thing that could have made the races more entertaining! (“I’ve got five bucks on the lady in pink. I got a hot tip.”)
I’d love to do more short races like the mile. Only I bet that hurt like HADES!!
Oh, my gosh, it really did! And that wasn’t even a FAST mile—the guys who went in the last heat, the sub-5 guys, looked like their heads might blow up!