Snowman Shuffle 4 Mile

a Cherokee Park hill on a sunny day

Katie and I packed up our gear on Friday night to head down to Louisville, KY for the "Snowman Shuffle 4 Mile" race put on by River City Races.  Since I am injured, I actually got to spectate and cheer at a race for once.


The weather had been beautiful all week but the Louisville area got hit by an absolute downpour beginning an hour or two before the 9AM start of the race.  Cherokee Park is certainly a "jewel" of Louisville and encompasses a few miles of rolling hills in the middle of the city.


Since temperatures were on the colder side and the rain was unceasing, Katie wore some Mizuno tights and my Sugoi hydrolite jacket to stay warm and dry.

Course Map

This race was chip timed, which was probably good idea given the crowded race start I saw.  The rain and weather conditions probably cut down a little bit on the participation, but the results list still included 653 runners so there were definitely plenty of runners on the course.





After a great downhill start and a fast first mile Katie ended with a personal best 32:48 and 7th of 51 finish in the 25-29 female age group.  Katie finished with a strong uphill climb and 100 feet of elevation gain that left many other runners struggling.

The Final Climb

I "interviewed" Katie after the race:


J: What did you think about the mostly downhill first mile, how did it feel?
K: I actually felt like I didn't warm up as well as I could have the first mile.  I think I would have preferred an uphill or flat start.


J: How was the congestion at the first downhill with the number of runners out on the course?
K: I usually like to stride out downhill so that was a little difficult because of the congestion.


J: After you went downhill and went around the first switch back and climbed a little, how did that first climb feel?
K: It wasn't bad.  I guess it got pretty rolling after that.



J: You wore the Nike Free 3.0 today during the race and in the rain.  How did you think the shoe performed in the wet conditions?
K: I think it was good.  A little wet.  I think it probably didn't hold as much water as a heavier shoe might have.



J: What was your favorite part of the race today?
K: I enjoyed the second mile the most, it was interesting and not all uphill or downhill.


J: Did you get motivated by other runners during the race to pick up the pace at any points?
K: I caught some runners younger than the kids I teach, I was motivated to pass them. (laughs)

J: At the 2 mile mark how did your pace feel?  How did you think your pace compared with your usual 5k pace?
K:  It was definitely faster than my usual 5k pace.
J: Why do you think that is?
K: Because I've been running.
J: Hmmmmm.