May 7, 2014

Running with KIND Snacks: Fiesta 5K Recap



This past Saturday I got the opportunity to run the Fiesta 5K with a group of people for KIND Snacks, one of the race's sponsors.  One of the marketing guys for KIND approached me about running for them, and of course I couldn't turn it down, especially to run a race for such a great cause like the Packard Center for ALS research. 

Not only do I love KIND healthy snacks like their dark chocolate sea salt bars and peanut butter granola, but I've become more impressed with KIND snacks' involvement in community events around Baltimore along with nation-wide which goes along with their slogan Do the Kind Thing. They even have a campaign with NBA star Kevin Durant to reach 1 million Strong and Kind pledges to support their $1 million donation to Durant's foundation which creates specialized after-school and education programs for at-risk youth.  Join me and take the pledge here!

Before the race the weather was cloudy but warm. I actually had some blue capris that matched the KIND shirt so I was in fully matching running clothes for once! I jogged an easy mile down to the start line after having my usual pre-race breakfast of a banana and peanut butter!Our team was Joe, Theo, Holly, and me. I know Holly from group marathon training last summer so it was great to catch up!

photo of the team from Tim of KIND-thanks!



The race was a pretty flat, easy  5K that started and ended at Power Plant Live downtown. The course went along the harbor, through Harbor East, and then looped around in Fells Point before heading back to Power Plant.  The KIND team tried to stay together but the boys ended up running faster ahead so I stuck with Holly and enjoyed the race as we got a chance to chat. Theo said he heard us talking the whole time! This was one of those times where it was actually nice to stick to my plan of not racing! I thought we would be running this race slower but still ended up running 7:30 miles! 

The first 2/3 of the race went by really fast! The last third of the race was pretty much a straightaway to the finish line which felt like it went on forever!  In the end I finished in a respectable 23:18 and managed to be 7th in my age group and 107/1476 overall! 

Photo courtesy of Holly

Post-race we all hung out at the KIND table and helped hand out complimentary KIND bars to runners. There was apparently some post-race food, but I just stuck with the rest of my lemon-lime Nuun Energy, water, and a KIND bar of course!  It was great to see people love their bars as much as I do!  The sun even started to peek out from behind the clouds which was nice. 


There was over $400,000 raised for ALS research from the race. It was so inspiring to see so many runners and teams who either were battling ALS or Lou Gehrig's diseases or were running for a friend or family member who had the disease. It was great to spend a Saturday morning running and supporting a really great cause.  This is definitely a fast and fun 5K I'd love to run again!


What's your favorite flavor of KIND bars? Have you supported a charity recently?

8 comments:

  1. Yep, wishing I did this race. I'm all about those courses along the water and I think my legs would have enjoyed running a 5k a lot more than 10 miles of hills. I'm glad you ended up sticking to your plan of not racing since we had just talked about how we never actually do it. The more races people seem to like in Baltimore, the more I have to add to my list to run. At the rate I'm going, I might as well split my time equally between Boston and Charm City...

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    1. It was definitely enjoyable, and I'm so proud of myself for not pushing it too hard! Um well you always have a pullout couch to sleep on in Baltimore so you can race all you want here :)

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  2. All this talk about KIND bars makes me want to eat one now lol :0) Great job at the 5K!! That's an amazing time!

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    1. Haha they are SO good. I had one with my breakfast this morning! Thanks!

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  3. nice work dude! you better believe i snagged a kind bar afterwards - how did i miss you!?

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    1. No way! I was looking for since you said you were running! We should hang out sometime!

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  4. dark chocolate sea salt? NEED IT! i was able to snag an extra box of peanut butter dark chocolate KIND bars after an event I organized, so good.

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  5. Great time with our team, great job Tim.#WeRunBaltimore

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