My First 10K Playlist

Signing up to complete any kind of race in any fashion (walking/running/crawling) is not overly exciting to me. I hate running. HATE IT. And walking is frustrating because everyone else is either running or walking way faster than me. But my employer makes it too easy. They pay the entry fee, provide education, and really value employees who make the commitment to train and finish. You even get to have dinner with the CEO the night before the event at his house (nice perk).

So determined to make the best of things I thought about how I could make the race itself fun. I color coordinated my race day gear to match the colors of my favorite sports team (Chicago Blackhawks baby!! 3 Stanley Cups in 6 years!!!). But the thing that I felt would make the biggest difference was the music I would walk to. I should mention that the event I was taking part in was the P.F. Changs Rock and Roll Marathon, ½ Marathon, 10k, and 5k in Phoenix. I didn’t know what to expect from the bands along the course and wanted to be sure that what I was listening to would be both stuff I liked and inspiring me across the finish line. So I sat down and opened I-Tunes and created a playlist. I started the process in November (the race was in January) and adjusted over those two months. A few caveats. No more than one song from any artist (broken once, but if you know me you’d be surprised at which artist it wasn’t), and I could not listen to the playlist until race day. I wanted it to be the first time I heard the list play (a celebration of my pain!!).

So with all that in mind and before I tell you if I lived through the experience I give you my playlist for my first competitive walk/run.

1. It’s Five O’clock Somewhere (Alan Jackson w/Jimmy Buffett) 
2. Complicated (Avril Lavigne) 
3. Hello, Goodbye (The Beatles) – Needed a Beatles song, so many to choose from.
4. A Matter of Trust (Billy Joel) – Discovered this song because of MTV. Remember when they played music videos? My favorite BJ song.
5. Closer to Free (BoDeans)
6. Home (Daughtry) - Daughtry is the best thing to ever come off of American Idol IMO.
7. Grey Street (Dave Matthews Band) - Again, so many to choose from. My favorite DMB song.
8. It’s In the Way That You Use It (Eric Clapton)
9. Tuff Enough (Fabulous Thunderbirds) 
10. Chelsea Dagger (The Fratellis) – The goal song for the Blackhawks. Pretty catchy tune.
11. Calin Baton Rouge (Garth Brooks)
12. Basket Case (Green Day)
13. Hold My Hand (Hootie & The Blowfish) – Did everyone think Darius Rucker’s name was Hootie like I did?
14. Hurts So Good (John Mellencamp)
15. Lonely Ol’ Night (John Mellencamp) – Doubled up on JM. Found his greatest hits CD and could not help it. He’s so good.
16. Pirate Flag (Kenny Chesney) – Found this tune while making a playlist for my Caribbean Trip last year.
17. Rock’n Roll All Night (KISS)
18. The Kid’s Aren’t Alright (The Offspring) – I love the Offspring!
19. Good Time (Owl City w/Carly Rae Jepsen)
20. Jessie’s Girl (Rick Springfield)
21. Dance in the Middle (Rusted Root) – Introduced to Rusted Root by my better half. Good Stuff.
22. The Warrior (Scandal) – Did you know that Patti Smyth from Scandal is married to John Mcenroe?
23. Interstate Love Song (Stone Temple Pilots) – God…. Scott Weiland was so talented. And this song was amazing.
24. Walk On (U2) – Will always tie this song to 9/11.
25. Shut Up and Dance (Walk the Moon) – My daughters influence.
26. When Can I See You Again – (Owl City) – And more of her influence.
27. Slide (Goo Goo Dolls)
28. Baba O’Riley (The Who) – Who does not love the opening to this song?
29. Man On The Moon (REM)
30. It’s My Job (Jimmy Buffet) – So hard to pick one JB song. But this one is an absolute favorite.
31. These Are the Days of Our Lives (Queen) – Freddie was the best.

So it’s obvious at this point that I survived. The event itself was really well put on. Very organized and the weather was amazing. I cranked through the 10K in 1:23:50 which was 6:10 ahead of my goal. I ran all the downhill parts of the course (I highly recommend this) and also the last mile. It’s hard not to get pumped up at the finish when all the spectators are cheering the runs/walkers on. Getting the medal (bling!) and having a Gatorade after the race was the cherry on top. The following day at work the talk of course was would everyone be doing this again next year? I think it’s a forgone conclusion that we will.

My music made the race fly by as I had hoped it would. There were a couple of times my legs and brain got weary and I just told myself to concentrate on the song that was playing. Next thing I knew I was 3 songs further along. I could not envision doing a race/walk of any kind without music to help me focus.

By the way, I hit shuffle on my playlist as the race got underway. The song playing at the start was Interstate Love Song by STP. The song playing at the finish was Grey Street by DMB. Pretty fitting.