Walked the Depot Parkrun 5K This Morning

Today is the last day of May, my last chance this month to get in a speed-walk at Gainesville's Depot Parkrun 5K.  It had been raining off and on all night, and when I got up this morning around 6 there was still a drizzle outside. But when I left to go to Depot Park a little before 7, the rain had completely abated...at race time, 7:30, it was 71 degrees with 74% humidity: pretty uncomfortable but at least the clouds shielded us from the sun.  Since I was walking the event, the adverse conditions that reminded me of my 10K race last week didn't much affect me.  My goal was to finish faster than 40 minutes, returning to a string of speed-walking 5K final times below that mark I did before March's surgery.   I pushed it hard for the race and finished with a time of 39:42...you can view the results by clicking HERE.  Gainesville...or more technically the greater Gainesville area...is being doubly blessed, starting July 12th, with a second weekly Parkrun.  This one, called West End Community Parkrun, is taking place in a new park converted from a golf course.  It's on Newberry Road west of town, on the north side of the street about six blocks west of NW 122nd Street...in the incorporated town of Tioga.  I'm not sure whether I'll go there on the first day, but it should be fun to visit from time to time.  As far as my speed-walking is concerned, before the succession of family tragedy and health crises this past year, I was gradually working up my walking speed to 5 mph, which in a 5K would be reflected by a 37:20 finishing time.  Well, I'm back on track working toward that goal, which I've managed to accomplish on a treadmill but not on a hard surface...