Haven't been active here for almost two weeks...
My computer went crazy last days... I gave up of writing for a while. 
Now I write from my telephone, I hope the text will look neat and the pictures won't be giant. My excuse if this post looks chaotic :)

On Sunday, 18th March, I had another race. It was 5km long race Spiegelplasloop in Dutch village Nederhorst den Berg.
My wish and goal was to finish the race in less then 29' 30". 
It was sunny but cold with the temperature that  felt like -7C. Wind was freezing.  
Again, I was almost late for the race.
 I didn't have time to think about the weather.  I jumped out of car, ran a bit to the building where I picked my number 5 minutes before the race, and then quickly went to warm up at least a bit, before the race started.

At the beginning of the race, I forgot to turn the watch on, so in Strava looks like I ran 4.73km.
During the race, everything was fine, I felt great, my legs felt light. But again, the feeling in my chest reminded me few times that I should slow down. I followed my heart rate, and in one moment it was 193! (Btw I am 43). I had to slow down even if my legs could more, and even if it was somewhere around 4km. That was really bad moment. 
While I was approaching the finish line, I didn't care about the heart rate anymore. It was about 170...and  I thought: I have time untill it reach 190 again..And if I fall, someone will help me, and that's it :) 

Fortunately,  I finished the race on my feet :D and within planned time. I finished in 28' 37". I really didn't expect that! What a thrill :) 
I know that someone find this funny, but I am still beginner, very proud of my own improvement and reached goals.

Here are some pictures regarding Spiegelplasloop. I am sorry if the pictures are too big, I am posting from my phone and I find it complicated to scale. I might re-edit them later. 

![IMG_20180318_144757_034.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmXDAioz62tRPMzwCJaQv5wx6WhPJKnuzQYFxEPhiqqd9u/IMG_20180318_144757_034.jpg)

![IMG_20180318_212801_708.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmRbXM5bRKwvRuspCJXf6WjpzfpuD64zq64tFL6uwS2dj9/IMG_20180318_212801_708.jpg)

I am really proud how my pace is improved lately and how I kept it balanced.
![IMG_20180318_212801_706.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmPdB2E8e6qgLucCrb3dBMdrGKKjN3mBH3MhyqQP5kaEDK/IMG_20180318_212801_706.jpg)

And for the end, very optimistic smile before the race. I knew it would be a great day! And it was!
![IMG_20180318_202341_123.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmbQeg3DENd8Ys76F9VSNtxzcsaRG9UwYRpnsL4VwbYzxQ/IMG_20180318_202341_123.jpg)


Next race, in three weeks: 
10km. Goal: Finish time within 57'

I might change my expectation and goals, depending on how I prepare in next day.

Cheers,
@nelzie

<i> Happy to be a member of @runningproject </i>