I'm not much of a Thanksgiving guy. I really only eat turkey if it's fried and I don't like most of the other traditional dishes, except for macaroni and cheese, rolls and a couple slices of pumpkin pie. Rather than sitting around a table eating, I'd rather be up stairs watching TV or playing Xbox and eating some Halloween candy. However, I'm trying to make it a Thanksgiving tradition to run in a race on Thanksgiving.
Last year, I spent Thanksgiving in South Carolina and was going to run an 8k in Greenville, but woke up sick. Two years ago, I ran the Indian Lake Loop and really enjoyed it. I was thinking about running the Boulevard Bolt this year but since Ryan Snellen wasn't racing it and it was more expensive than the Indian Lake Loop, I decided to give my hometown race another go.
I had a really hard workout on Monday and wasn't planning on racing this all-out. I was shooting for somewhere around 5:00 pace, so I was looking to run just under 25:00. Two years ago, I got beat by an out of town guy, so I was really hoping he showed up again this year.
I did my normal warm-up routine and since the Porta-John line was insanely long, I decided to visit a bush before heading to the line. It was hard to camoulflage myself in my neon orange singlet but I did my best.
The race seemed like it was pretty big compared to when I ran it two years ago. There was at least 300 people but I didn't see the guy who beat me a couple years back, which was a little disappointing. When the race started, I let some little kid lead for a little bit before crushing his ego and stealing his soul. After about a quarter of a mile, I was moving pretty quickly and was anxious to see what my first mile split would be.
I figured I was going sub 4:50 mile pace so after the watch went past five minutes, I figured the first mile was long. Unfortunately it turned out there were no mile markers during the entire race. It was frustrating because every race I've ever run has had mile markers and the split data is what gets me from mile-to-mile and lets me assess my performance on the run.
When we were running down Indian Lake Blvd., it turned out the biker had us on the wrong side of the road and instead of reversing it and going back on the other side, he just had me do a 180 degree turn and run back down the road.
After heading back down Indian Lake, we turned onto Saundersville for quite a while. Even though there were no splits, I was pretty sure I was under 15 at what would be 5k and shortly after 15 minutes, I started to struggle a little bit. I did my best to stay relaxed while not taking my foot off the gas too much. It felt like we were running down Saundersville Rd. for way too long and once I hit 22 minutes, I knew the course had to be way long. That made me back off the pace a tad because instead of getting a legit time, I would run something that wouldn't really mean anything.
I crossed the line in 26:25 and it turned out we took a couple of wrong turns and the course was closer to 5.4 miles, which would have resulted in a five mile time of around 24:25. Based off my Team Nashville race, this was a harder effort, which was a little frustrating but I was a little tired from a marathon workout three days beforehand. However, since this was my last race before the marathon, I wanted to get the wheels moving and hurt a little bit and that's what happened.
With just 2.5 weeks to go, it's now time to get a feel for and lock into marathon pace so I can make my assault on 2:19.
Showing posts with label race. Show all posts
Showing posts with label race. Show all posts
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Team Nashville 10 Miler
On this weekend last year, I ran the Nashville Half-Marathon. However, the Team Nashville 10 miler took place practically on my home turf and I've always heard great things about it. What made me decide on this over the Nashville Half-Marathon was that it was 1/3 of the cost and you get a hoody, as well as pizza. And not some crappy chain pizza but Painturo's pizza, which is pretty stinkin' good.
I changed my mind back and forth between how I wanted to run. Inititally, I wanted to run this at 5:10-5:15 pace and use this as a harder workout. That way, I could get in a good, long session, and not beat up my legs very much so I could train really hard the next week. The other side of me wanted to use this as a near race effort to see if I could get under 51:00. My next hard workout wasn't scheduled until the next Wednesday, so I would have time to recover. While half-marathons trash my legs for several days, I figured a 10 mile race would be a quicker recovery. However, Wednesday's workout put a beating on my legs, so I decided to go with the more controlled effort.
Looking at the forecast the night before, I anticipated a pretty good temperature, with some steady wind. However, the weather was under 40 degrees and luckily, there wasn't much wind. I wanted to get in about 15 miles for the morning, so I ran just under a three mile warm-up with my token strides and drills. I got to the line just in time and saw a lot of Hendersonville Running Club members, as well as Scott Fanning, who's a really tough Master's runner in the area.
When the gun went off, I got out pretty slowly. I always hate starting off fast and looking like an idiot. After running for the pack for a hundred meters or so, I slowly left them. We ran in the park for a mile, which took me 5:15. That was slower than I wanted and I knew the next mile was pretty rolling, so I picked it up some. I also knew a lot of windy roads were coming up, so I practiced running the tangents, to get a mental feel for it so it's fresh on my mind for Rocket City.
My second mile was a 5:03 but it felt relaxed. I realized nearly everyone feels relaxed two miles into a ten mile race, so I tried to make sure I kept it comfortable but my body was locking into the rhythm and I split 5:04 the next mile. In this mile, we were about to start the four mile Madison Creek Loop. The first part contains a couple very gradual inclines that you really don't notice until you start running fast on them. The first half of the loop climaxes with a short but steep climb before giving you an instant downhill with some additional very gradual declines.
Because I knew the first half of the loop was going to be a little more difficult, I tried to stay focused and not get lazy on the hills and split 5:08 for the fourth mile. I was still running faster than I initially planned but the pace felt so relaxed and even felt easier than a tempo run. The next mile went by in 5:11 and then shortly after, it was time to climb the hill.
At first glance, the hill doesn't really look that tough. As I mentioned earlier, it's a pretty short climb but what makes it bad is all of that slow, gradual climbing you did before that. By the time you start the hill, you realize you're already tired, so it's a struggle to make it to the top. Similar to being stuffed by a plate of spaghetti at Demos' because of all the bread I ate beforehand, I struggled up the hill due to the pre-hill "appetizers."
After getting to the top, I knew it was going to be smooth sailing for a while. I took advantage of the downhill and went through the sixth mile in 5:09. At this point, I wasn't really paying attention to how fast I was running, I was just going by effort. And becasue my watch display only showed the current time of the mile I was running on, I wasn't sure of my overall time. However, I knew I was definitely sub 52:00 pace and still felt really good. I then decided to go for around 51:30.
The new goal most have motivated me because somehow I dropped a 4:52 the next mile. I have a hard time running a 4:52 mile in a 5k, so I was definitely pleased with how relaxed this felt. I also continued to get more greedy because I then decided to shoot for 51:00. It was over a minute faster than my original goal but I wasn't running any harder than what I thought a 52:00 would feel like, so I decided to go for it.
After doing some rough math, I figured I'd need to run in the low 5:00s to break 51. I tried to focus on the next mile and lock into 5:00 pace but again, I got overly excited and ran a 4:42 mile, which was insanely fast. For a brief moment, I debated trying to keep up the fast pace and break 50:00, but I didn't want a few days of dead legs, so I made myself relax and went through the ninth mile in 4:57.
The last mile contains a somewhat tough hill. Even on easy runs, I struggle up it a little bit, so because I knew I'd lose several seconds on it, I turned up the pace a notch. I was surprised with how strong I felt running up the hill and I enjoyed the downhill after it before entering the park for the last minute or so of running.
Coming into the final straightaway, I expected to see around 50:30 or so on the clock, so I was really amazed when I saw it was right near 50:00. I relaxed a little bit and ended up running 50:09, with a 4:48 last mile. A few minutes later, I was told it was a new state record by over a minute, which surprised me because I honestly could have run a minute faster if I would have run harder, not to mention, this was the 7th day of a 121 mile week.
About the only bad thing about the day is that I almost potentially got beat up by some fat guy. I was waiting for one of my high school runners to finish up and some guy in a car laid on the horn at some runner who ran in front of him. When the car drove by me, I shrugged my shoulders and gave him a "what's your problem" look. Immediately the driver slammed on his brakes and came out of the car towards me. He was a really big dude but I couldn't tell if he was just fat-fat or grizzly bear fat. He asked me what my problem was and I told him to relax because the guy was just running a race. We debated back and forth for a bit and then he mentioned something about breaking my legs so I wouldn't be able to run. I then let him know there was a bunch of cops just around the turn and threatening someone is a crime. After the situation, I realized that I should have told him that even with broken legs, at least I would still be able to wipe my own butt but the best comebacks are usually thought of after the situation. He then walked back to his car and I may or may not have yelled something about Krispy-Kreme donuts.
If it theoretically did come down to a scrap, hopefully my time getting beaten up and choked on a near daily basis at Westside MMA would come in handy. With a fat guy like that, I guess I would just keep my distance and leg kick him until he fell down or had a heart attack. Who knows. Well, four more weeks to go and things are looking good. I feel like I'm in 2:19 shape now and still have some fitness to gain. I guess I just have to avoid the sicknesses and not get beat up by random fat guys.
I changed my mind back and forth between how I wanted to run. Inititally, I wanted to run this at 5:10-5:15 pace and use this as a harder workout. That way, I could get in a good, long session, and not beat up my legs very much so I could train really hard the next week. The other side of me wanted to use this as a near race effort to see if I could get under 51:00. My next hard workout wasn't scheduled until the next Wednesday, so I would have time to recover. While half-marathons trash my legs for several days, I figured a 10 mile race would be a quicker recovery. However, Wednesday's workout put a beating on my legs, so I decided to go with the more controlled effort.
Looking at the forecast the night before, I anticipated a pretty good temperature, with some steady wind. However, the weather was under 40 degrees and luckily, there wasn't much wind. I wanted to get in about 15 miles for the morning, so I ran just under a three mile warm-up with my token strides and drills. I got to the line just in time and saw a lot of Hendersonville Running Club members, as well as Scott Fanning, who's a really tough Master's runner in the area.
When the gun went off, I got out pretty slowly. I always hate starting off fast and looking like an idiot. After running for the pack for a hundred meters or so, I slowly left them. We ran in the park for a mile, which took me 5:15. That was slower than I wanted and I knew the next mile was pretty rolling, so I picked it up some. I also knew a lot of windy roads were coming up, so I practiced running the tangents, to get a mental feel for it so it's fresh on my mind for Rocket City.
My second mile was a 5:03 but it felt relaxed. I realized nearly everyone feels relaxed two miles into a ten mile race, so I tried to make sure I kept it comfortable but my body was locking into the rhythm and I split 5:04 the next mile. In this mile, we were about to start the four mile Madison Creek Loop. The first part contains a couple very gradual inclines that you really don't notice until you start running fast on them. The first half of the loop climaxes with a short but steep climb before giving you an instant downhill with some additional very gradual declines.
Because I knew the first half of the loop was going to be a little more difficult, I tried to stay focused and not get lazy on the hills and split 5:08 for the fourth mile. I was still running faster than I initially planned but the pace felt so relaxed and even felt easier than a tempo run. The next mile went by in 5:11 and then shortly after, it was time to climb the hill.
At first glance, the hill doesn't really look that tough. As I mentioned earlier, it's a pretty short climb but what makes it bad is all of that slow, gradual climbing you did before that. By the time you start the hill, you realize you're already tired, so it's a struggle to make it to the top. Similar to being stuffed by a plate of spaghetti at Demos' because of all the bread I ate beforehand, I struggled up the hill due to the pre-hill "appetizers."
After getting to the top, I knew it was going to be smooth sailing for a while. I took advantage of the downhill and went through the sixth mile in 5:09. At this point, I wasn't really paying attention to how fast I was running, I was just going by effort. And becasue my watch display only showed the current time of the mile I was running on, I wasn't sure of my overall time. However, I knew I was definitely sub 52:00 pace and still felt really good. I then decided to go for around 51:30.
The new goal most have motivated me because somehow I dropped a 4:52 the next mile. I have a hard time running a 4:52 mile in a 5k, so I was definitely pleased with how relaxed this felt. I also continued to get more greedy because I then decided to shoot for 51:00. It was over a minute faster than my original goal but I wasn't running any harder than what I thought a 52:00 would feel like, so I decided to go for it.
After doing some rough math, I figured I'd need to run in the low 5:00s to break 51. I tried to focus on the next mile and lock into 5:00 pace but again, I got overly excited and ran a 4:42 mile, which was insanely fast. For a brief moment, I debated trying to keep up the fast pace and break 50:00, but I didn't want a few days of dead legs, so I made myself relax and went through the ninth mile in 4:57.
The last mile contains a somewhat tough hill. Even on easy runs, I struggle up it a little bit, so because I knew I'd lose several seconds on it, I turned up the pace a notch. I was surprised with how strong I felt running up the hill and I enjoyed the downhill after it before entering the park for the last minute or so of running.
Coming into the final straightaway, I expected to see around 50:30 or so on the clock, so I was really amazed when I saw it was right near 50:00. I relaxed a little bit and ended up running 50:09, with a 4:48 last mile. A few minutes later, I was told it was a new state record by over a minute, which surprised me because I honestly could have run a minute faster if I would have run harder, not to mention, this was the 7th day of a 121 mile week.
About the only bad thing about the day is that I almost potentially got beat up by some fat guy. I was waiting for one of my high school runners to finish up and some guy in a car laid on the horn at some runner who ran in front of him. When the car drove by me, I shrugged my shoulders and gave him a "what's your problem" look. Immediately the driver slammed on his brakes and came out of the car towards me. He was a really big dude but I couldn't tell if he was just fat-fat or grizzly bear fat. He asked me what my problem was and I told him to relax because the guy was just running a race. We debated back and forth for a bit and then he mentioned something about breaking my legs so I wouldn't be able to run. I then let him know there was a bunch of cops just around the turn and threatening someone is a crime. After the situation, I realized that I should have told him that even with broken legs, at least I would still be able to wipe my own butt but the best comebacks are usually thought of after the situation. He then walked back to his car and I may or may not have yelled something about Krispy-Kreme donuts.
If it theoretically did come down to a scrap, hopefully my time getting beaten up and choked on a near daily basis at Westside MMA would come in handy. With a fat guy like that, I guess I would just keep my distance and leg kick him until he fell down or had a heart attack. Who knows. Well, four more weeks to go and things are looking good. I feel like I'm in 2:19 shape now and still have some fitness to gain. I guess I just have to avoid the sicknesses and not get beat up by random fat guys.
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Boo Boo Dash
Sometimes you just don't feel like doing a workout by yourself. Rather than running back and forth down Lower Station Camp, I decided to make the longer than expected drive to Springfield for the Boo Boo Dash. The race was four miles and was on a mostly flat course, which sounded right up my alley.
My plan was to lock into 5:05-5:10 pace and keep it as controlled as I could. The first mile drops a good bit, before heading to the greenway. I accidentally took a wrong turn before the 2nd place guy called out to me and got me back on the right track. It only added 3-4 seconds, so no worries there. My first mile split was 4:57, so I backed off a little bit so I didn't go into racing mode. The next mile was entirely on the greenway, before making a U-turn the way you came.
There was no official two mile split marker, but my second and third miles combined were 10:32. That was slower than I wanted, so I had to speed back up and find my desired rhythm. The last mile was mainly uphill and on a confusing portion, I took a wrong turn, which added about 15-20 seconds. Luckily I had a few minute lead on the second place guy, so it didn't effect anything. I crossed the line in 20:54, with a long last mile in 5:25. With the wrong turns, I would have run around 20:30, which was exactly what I wanted.
Overall, I enjoyed the race a lot. The greenway ran along a creek, and was really scenic and peaceful. The race was very well managed and there were a lot of vendors that gave out free food, which is always a way to win me over. It was definitely a great way to start off the weekend and I will most likely be back next year.
My plan was to lock into 5:05-5:10 pace and keep it as controlled as I could. The first mile drops a good bit, before heading to the greenway. I accidentally took a wrong turn before the 2nd place guy called out to me and got me back on the right track. It only added 3-4 seconds, so no worries there. My first mile split was 4:57, so I backed off a little bit so I didn't go into racing mode. The next mile was entirely on the greenway, before making a U-turn the way you came.
There was no official two mile split marker, but my second and third miles combined were 10:32. That was slower than I wanted, so I had to speed back up and find my desired rhythm. The last mile was mainly uphill and on a confusing portion, I took a wrong turn, which added about 15-20 seconds. Luckily I had a few minute lead on the second place guy, so it didn't effect anything. I crossed the line in 20:54, with a long last mile in 5:25. With the wrong turns, I would have run around 20:30, which was exactly what I wanted.
Overall, I enjoyed the race a lot. The greenway ran along a creek, and was really scenic and peaceful. The race was very well managed and there were a lot of vendors that gave out free food, which is always a way to win me over. It was definitely a great way to start off the weekend and I will most likely be back next year.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Haunted Half-Marathon
I really hate half-marathons. With marathons, the the key is to stay relaxed and patient for the first 13-15 miles, with pain not really settling in until after that. With the 10k, the pace is intense and the wheels have some fast rpms but the race doesn't last very long. The half-marathon is a combination of the worst aspects of those two races. You get the intense gasping for air pain that the 10k gives, as well as the extreme all-around body fatigue that the marathon generously offers. The perfect explanation for the half-marathon is a tempo run where you die terribly the last few miles. I've run four of them, with only two of those being races. Both of those races were painful experiences for me.
I went into the race hoping that no one really fast would show up so I could run a 1:10-1:11 and use it as a marathon workout. Half-marathons are very hard on the body and take a lot of time to recover from. I wouldn't consider racing a half-marathon any less than four weeks out from a marathon, and even that is a little close. However, I was mentally prepared to race if I had to.
If I had to race, I wanted to at least run under 69:00 and with a great day, felt I could sneak close to 68:00. With my busy schedule, I really haven't had much time to get in any good, consistent half-marathon type workouts. I knew the mileage made me somewhat strong but being strong and half-marathon strong are two different things.
Two weeks before this, I got in just a hair under 116 miles for the week with a really good marathon workout. This week, I got in a little under 100 but backed off the intensity enough where I wasn't going into the race worn out. The race was in Cookeville, which is a little over an hour drive. The race started at 7am, so that meant a very early 3:15am wake-up. Luckily, I was having some company on the road with me. Ryan Chastain was riding down with me to experience his first half-marathon. He was more of a miler/5k guy in college but is a very tough long distance runner nonetheless.
Because it was still pitch black at 6:00am, it was hard to find out where to get our packets. We finally figured everything out, picked our stuff up and headed out for a 15 minute warm-up. The race weather was near perfect...just under 35 degrees, with it working its way to low 40s over the course of the race.
At the line, I saw my friend Bradley Chronister, who is a pretty solid runner and after looking over my shoulder, I got nervous because I saw Patrick Cheptoek and Micah Tirop behind me. Patrick absolutely destroyed my at the Goodlettsville Classic. I led him for a little over a mile before he put almost a minute on me in a little bit over two miles. I felt like a baby mouse playing with a lion. Micah is also very tough as well. He thoroughly spanked me the only two times we've raced but since he ran The Middle Half last week, I knew he'd be tired and thought I could have a shot of staying somewhat close if I played my cards right.
When the gun went off, some guy I didn't recognize took the lead and I filed in behind. I was a little nervous running ahead of Patrick and Micah but the pace wasn't very fast and I decided to go for a new PR.
I finished the first mile in 5:14 in a pack with five other guys. Micah and Patrick then took the lead, so I went with them. This mile had a pretty good downhill in it, so we ran a much faster, 4:59. I knew the next mile was uphill and the pace felt fast, so I gave them a bit of a gap in the third mile. In both half-marathons I've raced, I went out too fast and died terribly at the end, so I didn't want to make that mistake here.
Patrick and Micah continued to run together and were about 10 seconds ahead of me. My plan was to stay patient, keep them in site and maybe catch up to Micah if Patrick dropped him. Within the next few minutes, Patrick put in a small gap, so that's when I got focused and had a goal to slowly catch Micah in the next two miles or so.
The middle of the race included a lot of turns and small hills. I noticed that whenever I ran up a hill, I would make up a second or so on Micah, which gave me confidence because I'm a pretty bad hill runner. Shortly after the halfway point, I was only a few seconds away and then shortly after that, I caught up. He accelerated when I pulled up beside him but I stayed with him. I didn't want to make any moves because there was still a lot of racing left but I wanted to let him know I wasn't going anywhere.
Within the next few minutes, I slowly pulled away and did my best to keep Patrick, who was about 15-20 seconds ahead, somewhat close. I knew I wouldn't be able to beat him but I was hoping he would pull me to a fast time. At this point in the race, I knew I was going most likely going to break 68:00. At the Tom King half-marathon, I started to die around eight miles but in this race, I went through eight miles feeling really good. I knew I needed to stay focused until the 10th mile because that's when I started to really struggle at The Middle Half last year.
I went through ten miles feeling good and then decided I could make a run at sub 67:00. I had some muscle fatigue in my hamstrings and butt from all of the hills but aerobically, I was still really strong. I pushed down on the accelerator because I really didn't want to see 67:00 or 67:01 on the clock.
The last 5k included some more hills but I tried to stay strong on them so I wouldn't lose any additional seconds. With a mile to go, I was pretty certain I'd get sub 67:00. At this point, I was running consistent 5:00-5:05 miles but I didn't want to take it for granted. When I hit the final straightaway, I knew I had sub 67:00 in the bag and I crossed the line in 66:54 for 2nd place. Patrick had an easy win in 66:33, Micah was 3rd in 67:56 and Ryan ran really win to seal up 4th place in 68:10.
After last year's Middle Half, I had to lay down on the ground for a few minutes and after this year's Tom King half, I couldn't jog for more than a minute before having to walk. After today's raise, I was able to get in a good cool-down with Patrick without much trouble and there was never a point in the race where I didn't feel strong.
I was really pumped because I thought I was nowhere near that fitness level. Later on, I saw I set a new state record for 30 year old's and was only a few seconds from the open state record. Micah ran sub 66:00 last year but it's not listed as a record, which doesn't make sense. Maybe you have to be a U.S. citizen but fast running is fast running and if you live in Tennessee, you should be eligible for the record. Anyway, it was a great day and I feel like I'm where I need to be to make the assault at 2:19. It's now time to get full-fledged into marathon mode and ramp up the miles.
Mile splits: 5:14, 4:59, 5:07, 5:10, 5:03, 5:17, 5:10, 5:07, 5:08, 10:02 (2 miles), 5:05, 5:01
I went into the race hoping that no one really fast would show up so I could run a 1:10-1:11 and use it as a marathon workout. Half-marathons are very hard on the body and take a lot of time to recover from. I wouldn't consider racing a half-marathon any less than four weeks out from a marathon, and even that is a little close. However, I was mentally prepared to race if I had to.
If I had to race, I wanted to at least run under 69:00 and with a great day, felt I could sneak close to 68:00. With my busy schedule, I really haven't had much time to get in any good, consistent half-marathon type workouts. I knew the mileage made me somewhat strong but being strong and half-marathon strong are two different things.
Two weeks before this, I got in just a hair under 116 miles for the week with a really good marathon workout. This week, I got in a little under 100 but backed off the intensity enough where I wasn't going into the race worn out. The race was in Cookeville, which is a little over an hour drive. The race started at 7am, so that meant a very early 3:15am wake-up. Luckily, I was having some company on the road with me. Ryan Chastain was riding down with me to experience his first half-marathon. He was more of a miler/5k guy in college but is a very tough long distance runner nonetheless.
Because it was still pitch black at 6:00am, it was hard to find out where to get our packets. We finally figured everything out, picked our stuff up and headed out for a 15 minute warm-up. The race weather was near perfect...just under 35 degrees, with it working its way to low 40s over the course of the race.
At the line, I saw my friend Bradley Chronister, who is a pretty solid runner and after looking over my shoulder, I got nervous because I saw Patrick Cheptoek and Micah Tirop behind me. Patrick absolutely destroyed my at the Goodlettsville Classic. I led him for a little over a mile before he put almost a minute on me in a little bit over two miles. I felt like a baby mouse playing with a lion. Micah is also very tough as well. He thoroughly spanked me the only two times we've raced but since he ran The Middle Half last week, I knew he'd be tired and thought I could have a shot of staying somewhat close if I played my cards right.
When the gun went off, some guy I didn't recognize took the lead and I filed in behind. I was a little nervous running ahead of Patrick and Micah but the pace wasn't very fast and I decided to go for a new PR.
I finished the first mile in 5:14 in a pack with five other guys. Micah and Patrick then took the lead, so I went with them. This mile had a pretty good downhill in it, so we ran a much faster, 4:59. I knew the next mile was uphill and the pace felt fast, so I gave them a bit of a gap in the third mile. In both half-marathons I've raced, I went out too fast and died terribly at the end, so I didn't want to make that mistake here.
Patrick and Micah continued to run together and were about 10 seconds ahead of me. My plan was to stay patient, keep them in site and maybe catch up to Micah if Patrick dropped him. Within the next few minutes, Patrick put in a small gap, so that's when I got focused and had a goal to slowly catch Micah in the next two miles or so.
The middle of the race included a lot of turns and small hills. I noticed that whenever I ran up a hill, I would make up a second or so on Micah, which gave me confidence because I'm a pretty bad hill runner. Shortly after the halfway point, I was only a few seconds away and then shortly after that, I caught up. He accelerated when I pulled up beside him but I stayed with him. I didn't want to make any moves because there was still a lot of racing left but I wanted to let him know I wasn't going anywhere.
Within the next few minutes, I slowly pulled away and did my best to keep Patrick, who was about 15-20 seconds ahead, somewhat close. I knew I wouldn't be able to beat him but I was hoping he would pull me to a fast time. At this point in the race, I knew I was going most likely going to break 68:00. At the Tom King half-marathon, I started to die around eight miles but in this race, I went through eight miles feeling really good. I knew I needed to stay focused until the 10th mile because that's when I started to really struggle at The Middle Half last year.
I went through ten miles feeling good and then decided I could make a run at sub 67:00. I had some muscle fatigue in my hamstrings and butt from all of the hills but aerobically, I was still really strong. I pushed down on the accelerator because I really didn't want to see 67:00 or 67:01 on the clock.
The last 5k included some more hills but I tried to stay strong on them so I wouldn't lose any additional seconds. With a mile to go, I was pretty certain I'd get sub 67:00. At this point, I was running consistent 5:00-5:05 miles but I didn't want to take it for granted. When I hit the final straightaway, I knew I had sub 67:00 in the bag and I crossed the line in 66:54 for 2nd place. Patrick had an easy win in 66:33, Micah was 3rd in 67:56 and Ryan ran really win to seal up 4th place in 68:10.
After last year's Middle Half, I had to lay down on the ground for a few minutes and after this year's Tom King half, I couldn't jog for more than a minute before having to walk. After today's raise, I was able to get in a good cool-down with Patrick without much trouble and there was never a point in the race where I didn't feel strong.
I was really pumped because I thought I was nowhere near that fitness level. Later on, I saw I set a new state record for 30 year old's and was only a few seconds from the open state record. Micah ran sub 66:00 last year but it's not listed as a record, which doesn't make sense. Maybe you have to be a U.S. citizen but fast running is fast running and if you live in Tennessee, you should be eligible for the record. Anyway, it was a great day and I feel like I'm where I need to be to make the assault at 2:19. It's now time to get full-fledged into marathon mode and ramp up the miles.
Mile splits: 5:14, 4:59, 5:07, 5:10, 5:03, 5:17, 5:10, 5:07, 5:08, 10:02 (2 miles), 5:05, 5:01
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Harvest Moon 10k
I always look forward to the White House races because White House is where I do almost all of my hard workouts, so in a way, I look at it as my home course. Before getting sick, my plan was to run as many miles under 5:00 as I could, and if I died at the end, then so be it. Too often, it's easy to be concerned about having enough for for a strong finish or worrying about what's to come down the road instead of focusing on what's taking place at the current moment. Anyone can rally home with a strong finish but few can make themselves suffer in the middle (which I struggled with most of my college career).
After the Music City marathon, my legs were completely beat up for a few days, most likely due to my body still not being 100% from the sickness, so my new plan was to run a hard effort but not push it over the edge.
Normally the White House races are pretty low-key without a lot of competition. I didn't get to run this race last year because of a cross country meet, but two years ago, I ran 36 something and won by a few minutes, and the year before that, I finished as the first male (not first overall because I ended up getting "chicked"), running over 39:00 in the process. Festus Chemaoi showed up to the White House race this summer and while he didn't show up this year, one of my rivals, Jef Scott, did. He's almost 40 years old but is a low 15s 5k runner and I only beat him by a few seconds in a race this summer, despite being pretty fit, with him just coming back from a lay-off.
As soon as I saw him, I thought I would most likely lose. I was on track to get in about 100 miles this week, ran a pretty hard workout on Wednesday and still was not 100% from being sick. I still planned to go out on my shield, but I wasn't completely confident in my chances.
During my warm-up, I tried to get focused and prepare myself for the pain to come. Some people aren't big on visualization but it's huge with me. During my workouts and runs, I constantly think about upcoming races and visualize how I want them to go, as well as visualizing the things that can go wrong and how to work through them.
I decided the best strategy was to hang with him and then try to outkick him. He is usually a smart, consistent racer who closes up pretty hard over the last mile or so. When the gun went off, we stayed together as we made our way out of the park and into the neighborhood. The pace felt pretty quick but wasn't too bad. We hit the first mile marker in 4:16, which was definitely short because we were probably running 4:55-5:00 pace.
The second mile included a couple climbs, which I gapped him a tiny bit on. I'm normally a really bad hill runner but since I had a tiny lead, I decided to bluff and act like it was one of my strong points. He caught back up shortly and the course was pretty up-and-down for the next couple of miles as it made it's way to the greenway. I've out in a ton of miles on the greenway, so I knew all the ins-and-outs of it, which I was going to try to use to my advantage.
Once you hit the greenway, you hit a downhill that last 600m or so. Since I'm a decent downhill runner, I decided to make a little gap and then continue to hammer down the greenway. I got about a three second or so lead and continued to press so I could hopefully increase the gap due to the uphill finish.
Once you hit about 4.5 miles, there is a long, grinding hill that I dubbed "Puke Hill" after getting sick on it several years ago. I knew if I used too much gas before the hill, I'd have a heck of a time running up it. I then backed off the pace so I could have a little bit of mojo left and not get broken by Jef while running up it. I was feeling pretty good at this point but was leaving my fate in his hands. If he hammered the hill, it might be enough to mentally crack me and then I started losing a little bit of confidence before snapping out of it and getting focused again.
We stayed together up the hill and shortly after it, I felt him accelerate the pace a couple times but at this point in the race, I knew I would be able to stick with him and have enough for a hard, final push. Once we got off the greenway and entered the park again, I hung with him until I saw the finish line and then finished pretty strongly to take a two second win in 29:36.
After seeing the time, I knew the course was close to a half mile short. The course was pretty tough with all of the hills and it felt like I ran a little under 32 on a certified course. Despite that, I enjoyed the race a lot and always enjoy the small-town feel of the White House races.
Afterward, I got in several miles with Jef and got to know him better. His daughter runs for a killer high school cross country program and since Jef and his wife both coach, I was able to pick his brain on some coaching ideas.
Overall it was a great way to start the weekend. I ran much better than I thought I would be able to, had a lot left in the tank afterward and closed out a 100 mile week. It was also nice beating Jef because he's such a tough runner who will tear up the Master's scene in a few months.
After the Music City marathon, my legs were completely beat up for a few days, most likely due to my body still not being 100% from the sickness, so my new plan was to run a hard effort but not push it over the edge.
Normally the White House races are pretty low-key without a lot of competition. I didn't get to run this race last year because of a cross country meet, but two years ago, I ran 36 something and won by a few minutes, and the year before that, I finished as the first male (not first overall because I ended up getting "chicked"), running over 39:00 in the process. Festus Chemaoi showed up to the White House race this summer and while he didn't show up this year, one of my rivals, Jef Scott, did. He's almost 40 years old but is a low 15s 5k runner and I only beat him by a few seconds in a race this summer, despite being pretty fit, with him just coming back from a lay-off.
As soon as I saw him, I thought I would most likely lose. I was on track to get in about 100 miles this week, ran a pretty hard workout on Wednesday and still was not 100% from being sick. I still planned to go out on my shield, but I wasn't completely confident in my chances.
During my warm-up, I tried to get focused and prepare myself for the pain to come. Some people aren't big on visualization but it's huge with me. During my workouts and runs, I constantly think about upcoming races and visualize how I want them to go, as well as visualizing the things that can go wrong and how to work through them.
I decided the best strategy was to hang with him and then try to outkick him. He is usually a smart, consistent racer who closes up pretty hard over the last mile or so. When the gun went off, we stayed together as we made our way out of the park and into the neighborhood. The pace felt pretty quick but wasn't too bad. We hit the first mile marker in 4:16, which was definitely short because we were probably running 4:55-5:00 pace.
The second mile included a couple climbs, which I gapped him a tiny bit on. I'm normally a really bad hill runner but since I had a tiny lead, I decided to bluff and act like it was one of my strong points. He caught back up shortly and the course was pretty up-and-down for the next couple of miles as it made it's way to the greenway. I've out in a ton of miles on the greenway, so I knew all the ins-and-outs of it, which I was going to try to use to my advantage.
Once you hit the greenway, you hit a downhill that last 600m or so. Since I'm a decent downhill runner, I decided to make a little gap and then continue to hammer down the greenway. I got about a three second or so lead and continued to press so I could hopefully increase the gap due to the uphill finish.
Once you hit about 4.5 miles, there is a long, grinding hill that I dubbed "Puke Hill" after getting sick on it several years ago. I knew if I used too much gas before the hill, I'd have a heck of a time running up it. I then backed off the pace so I could have a little bit of mojo left and not get broken by Jef while running up it. I was feeling pretty good at this point but was leaving my fate in his hands. If he hammered the hill, it might be enough to mentally crack me and then I started losing a little bit of confidence before snapping out of it and getting focused again.
We stayed together up the hill and shortly after it, I felt him accelerate the pace a couple times but at this point in the race, I knew I would be able to stick with him and have enough for a hard, final push. Once we got off the greenway and entered the park again, I hung with him until I saw the finish line and then finished pretty strongly to take a two second win in 29:36.
After seeing the time, I knew the course was close to a half mile short. The course was pretty tough with all of the hills and it felt like I ran a little under 32 on a certified course. Despite that, I enjoyed the race a lot and always enjoy the small-town feel of the White House races.
Afterward, I got in several miles with Jef and got to know him better. His daughter runs for a killer high school cross country program and since Jef and his wife both coach, I was able to pick his brain on some coaching ideas.
Overall it was a great way to start the weekend. I ran much better than I thought I would be able to, had a lot left in the tank afterward and closed out a 100 mile week. It was also nice beating Jef because he's such a tough runner who will tear up the Master's scene in a few months.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Music City Half Marathon
Since it was only $35 and on a fast course, I decided to run the Music City Half Marathon and hopefully run it as a steadier pace. The winner usually runs this around 1:18 or so, so I was hoping to show up and run 5:40ish effort, which would be a solid but not overbearing pace. If someone ran faster than that, I would man up and race but I was really hoping to run
The week before this, I came down with some mystery flu-like illness, where my body had a high fever and a lot of aches, pains and chills. The fever lasted for less than 24 hours before disappearing. I was still really weak for a few days afterward, and then the fever decided to rear it's ugly head and put me on my butt again. I was debating skipping this race but for the past couple of days, I felt a little better (despite a constant, hacking cough) and really hoped I could still stick to my plan of 5:40s.
I ran three miles for my warm-up, which is a little longer than usual for a half-marathon but I was hoping to get in some good mileage during the morning. When it was time to race and the gun went off, I got out really relaxed and no one wanted to take the pace. I took the lead a few seconds into the race and was fortunate enough to keep it the rest of the way.
I finished in 1:14:06, with splits of 5:57, 5:37, 5:49, 5:46, 5:44, 5:40, 5:39, 5:28, 5:34, 5:31, 5:29, 5:34, 5:42, 35. I felt sluggish for the first half of the race, loosened up some in the middle and backed off the last mile because I started getting a little tired. Overall, I was happy with the performance considering my body is still beat up from being sick.
I enjoyed this race a lot. The admission is almost 1/3 the cost of the Country Music Half Marathon and the course is nice and flat (the course is almost identical to the Tom King Half Marathon).
The week before this, I came down with some mystery flu-like illness, where my body had a high fever and a lot of aches, pains and chills. The fever lasted for less than 24 hours before disappearing. I was still really weak for a few days afterward, and then the fever decided to rear it's ugly head and put me on my butt again. I was debating skipping this race but for the past couple of days, I felt a little better (despite a constant, hacking cough) and really hoped I could still stick to my plan of 5:40s.
I ran three miles for my warm-up, which is a little longer than usual for a half-marathon but I was hoping to get in some good mileage during the morning. When it was time to race and the gun went off, I got out really relaxed and no one wanted to take the pace. I took the lead a few seconds into the race and was fortunate enough to keep it the rest of the way.
I finished in 1:14:06, with splits of 5:57, 5:37, 5:49, 5:46, 5:44, 5:40, 5:39, 5:28, 5:34, 5:31, 5:29, 5:34, 5:42, 35. I felt sluggish for the first half of the race, loosened up some in the middle and backed off the last mile because I started getting a little tired. Overall, I was happy with the performance considering my body is still beat up from being sick.
I enjoyed this race a lot. The admission is almost 1/3 the cost of the Country Music Half Marathon and the course is nice and flat (the course is almost identical to the Tom King Half Marathon).
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Commodore Classic 8k Cross Country
After nearly eight years away from the game, it was time to once again lace-up my spikes (well, I actually had to borrow some from a kid on my team) and race the young whipper snappers in a college cross country race. I have some friends in the Nashville area who formed a team and gave me the invite to join. After coming off of five weeks of easier mileage, I knew I wouldn't be very race sharp but I was looking forward to seeing what I could pull off.
I didn't really have any concrete goals for the race. I knew the course was tough because my freshman year of college, I completely tanked in this race and ran 27:27. It was so bad that my coach went off on me right after the race and me being the sensitive diva I am, ended up fighting tears. Ryan Chastain was part of my team and he's a pretty solid runner and has done some recent races, so I decided to key off him for the first few miles and see how I felt. I also saw that the top 20 runners received a T-shirt, which then became my goal.
There were 22 teams in the race and I pegged Alabama as the favorite to win. Our team goal was to take out Vanderbilt and see how close we could get to Belmont and Lipscomb. I didn't know who the top individuals would be but I did see a lot of Kenyans and college kids with terrible looking tattoos. It's funny how in your late teens/early 20s, something looks so cool but down the road, just looks ridiculous. I'm just glad I didn't get the Flash tattoo I was planning on my junior year if I made All-American in the steeplechase (missed by just one spot.)
With some people being out with travel and sickness, our final team was me, Ryan Chastain, Ted Towse, Dan Muller, Alex Moore and Hunter Hethcoat. We were hoping to at least take out Vanderbilt and make a run at Belmont and Lipscomb.
I checked out the course on the warm-up and wasn't a big fan of it. The terrain was pretty bumpy, the grass was thick and there were a couple hills that I knew would put a whooping on me. Too often it's easy to subconsciously expect and rationalize a poor performance before you even step to the line.
When I headed to the line, I did a few strides but felt pretty flat. From my past shorter races, I've realized that I don't keep the pace fast enough and often settle into the patience of marathon mode. With the longer races, I still constantly focus on the pace, but in a more relaxed fashion. With races 10k and under, I have to make an effort to constantly press on the gas.
Everyone finally got settled, and it was time to go. When the gun went off, I tried to make my way in the top 20 or so. I got in my desired position about a hundred meters into the race and then slowly settled into my groove. That was a big mistake because in about 10 seconds, I went from about 20th to close to 100th. Guys flew by me and I got stuck in the middle with no escape. With training primarily by myself and running races were I'm usually towards the front, I've learned how to get a real read for my body, paces, etc. The problem was, I was racing about 200 other guys and I forgot what that was like.
I tried to shift my way out of the middle so I could move up. I had to push a couple of guys out of the way and cut off a few others but eventually, I was at the edge of the massive herd and for the next 10-15 seconds, sprinted my way up the side, passing about at least 50 people in the process.
A few hundred meters into the race, there is a bridge, which made traffic come to a standstill. However, once I got off that, I was able to pass a lot more people and a little over 1000 meters into the race, I was in the top 15. I continued to pass people and moved my way into the top 10, hitting the mile marker in 5:00.
Anyone can run a good first mile of a race when you're out of shape. You're pumped up, the adrenaline is pumping and you have a temporary false reality of your capabilities. Reality doesn't start creeping in until a few minutes later, so I chose to slightly slow down before science made me. I relaxed a hair and was within 10 seconds of the leader but over the course of the 2nd mile, I slowly lost some time. There was a hill that to the naked eye didn't look too bad but it definitely slowed me down. I split 5:15 for the second mile, which frustrated me because I knew if I lost 15 seconds in one mile, things could get ugly if I didn't consciously stay focused and work on attacking the guys ahead of me.
In the third mile, I was starting to get passed. Shortly before the end of the third mile, Ryan Chastain passed me, which was frustrating because I wanted to be close to him. And with me bleeding time, I knew if I got passed by him before three miles, I would probably lose to him by 15-20 seconds. In college, I really struggled with the 8k cross country distance. If I ran well for three miles, I would have a good race. However, if I struggled before the end of the third mile, I would not finish the race as a happy camper. Throughout the years, I've become a much improved and mature racer, so I mentally caught myself resorting to my old college habits and tried to get back into gear.
I split an even slower mile with a 5:27 but with a renewed focus, started chasing some guys again. I was probably in 15th-20th or so place at this point and tried to work my way back up into the top 10. I was gaining ground on the people in front of me and even passed a couple of them. I struggled up the hill again but after getting to the top, I started making up even more ground. I ran a really solid 5:06 split this mile, which put me back in the thick of things.
I heard Dave Milner yell to some Belmont kid that there was about 1000 meters left, so I tried to push. I went from just outside the top 10 to right behind a pack of several guys. I didn't want to start my kick too early, so I tried to stay close to the pack until it was time to sprint. My mental laziness cost me a few seconds and a few spots, as a Belmont kid and a couple of Kenyans went by me.
Finally, it was the final straightaway. In high school, I loved getting into kicks. It was mano-a- mano and if you were gritty and stubborn enough, you would win nearly everytime. In college, I learned that everyone is tough and even if you raced your butt off to the line, some guys would still beat you and then steal your lunch money. Since starting back running in Tennessee, the only time I've been in a kick is when Ryan Snellen beat me at the Fangtastic 5k this past February. So I was excited at the oppurtunity to test my manhood for the next twenty or so seconds.
I started gaining ground on the guys ahead of me and with about 50 meters in the race, passed a couple of guys. I could see the two Kenyans who went by me earlier on, starting to struggle, so I tried to kick in another gear and caught them both in the last 10 meters of the race.
I crossed the line in 11th place in 25:33 with a 4:45 last .97, and ended up with my t-shirt. It was a little bittersweet because if I would have run 2.5 seconds faster, I would have been 7th, which I think I could have done. But then again, if I would have run a little over 2.5 seconds slower, I would have been 14th. But we did beat Vanderbilt, which I was happy about.
One of my high school runners on his way to the Vandy game came to watch me run. Within a minute of receiving the shirt, I realized that I have too many shirts as it is, so I gave it to him. It's funny how little extrinsic rewards like a shirt, medal, etc., motivate you to achieve a certain task, but after you receive the reward, you realize it's meaningless and the real reward was completing the task.
All in all, it was a pretty good day at the office. I feel like this was a better performance than my Crazy 8's and Goodlettsville Classic 4 Miler even though I'm really rusty right now. The plan now is to spend the next month or so trying to get some wheels before laying down my marathon-specific fitness.
I didn't really have any concrete goals for the race. I knew the course was tough because my freshman year of college, I completely tanked in this race and ran 27:27. It was so bad that my coach went off on me right after the race and me being the sensitive diva I am, ended up fighting tears. Ryan Chastain was part of my team and he's a pretty solid runner and has done some recent races, so I decided to key off him for the first few miles and see how I felt. I also saw that the top 20 runners received a T-shirt, which then became my goal.
There were 22 teams in the race and I pegged Alabama as the favorite to win. Our team goal was to take out Vanderbilt and see how close we could get to Belmont and Lipscomb. I didn't know who the top individuals would be but I did see a lot of Kenyans and college kids with terrible looking tattoos. It's funny how in your late teens/early 20s, something looks so cool but down the road, just looks ridiculous. I'm just glad I didn't get the Flash tattoo I was planning on my junior year if I made All-American in the steeplechase (missed by just one spot.)
I checked out the course on the warm-up and wasn't a big fan of it. The terrain was pretty bumpy, the grass was thick and there were a couple hills that I knew would put a whooping on me. Too often it's easy to subconsciously expect and rationalize a poor performance before you even step to the line.
When I headed to the line, I did a few strides but felt pretty flat. From my past shorter races, I've realized that I don't keep the pace fast enough and often settle into the patience of marathon mode. With the longer races, I still constantly focus on the pace, but in a more relaxed fashion. With races 10k and under, I have to make an effort to constantly press on the gas.
A few hundred meters into the race, there is a bridge, which made traffic come to a standstill. However, once I got off that, I was able to pass a lot more people and a little over 1000 meters into the race, I was in the top 15. I continued to pass people and moved my way into the top 10, hitting the mile marker in 5:00.
Anyone can run a good first mile of a race when you're out of shape. You're pumped up, the adrenaline is pumping and you have a temporary false reality of your capabilities. Reality doesn't start creeping in until a few minutes later, so I chose to slightly slow down before science made me. I relaxed a hair and was within 10 seconds of the leader but over the course of the 2nd mile, I slowly lost some time. There was a hill that to the naked eye didn't look too bad but it definitely slowed me down. I split 5:15 for the second mile, which frustrated me because I knew if I lost 15 seconds in one mile, things could get ugly if I didn't consciously stay focused and work on attacking the guys ahead of me.
In the third mile, I was starting to get passed. Shortly before the end of the third mile, Ryan Chastain passed me, which was frustrating because I wanted to be close to him. And with me bleeding time, I knew if I got passed by him before three miles, I would probably lose to him by 15-20 seconds. In college, I really struggled with the 8k cross country distance. If I ran well for three miles, I would have a good race. However, if I struggled before the end of the third mile, I would not finish the race as a happy camper. Throughout the years, I've become a much improved and mature racer, so I mentally caught myself resorting to my old college habits and tried to get back into gear.
I split an even slower mile with a 5:27 but with a renewed focus, started chasing some guys again. I was probably in 15th-20th or so place at this point and tried to work my way back up into the top 10. I was gaining ground on the people in front of me and even passed a couple of them. I struggled up the hill again but after getting to the top, I started making up even more ground. I ran a really solid 5:06 split this mile, which put me back in the thick of things.
I heard Dave Milner yell to some Belmont kid that there was about 1000 meters left, so I tried to push. I went from just outside the top 10 to right behind a pack of several guys. I didn't want to start my kick too early, so I tried to stay close to the pack until it was time to sprint. My mental laziness cost me a few seconds and a few spots, as a Belmont kid and a couple of Kenyans went by me.
Finally, it was the final straightaway. In high school, I loved getting into kicks. It was mano-a- mano and if you were gritty and stubborn enough, you would win nearly everytime. In college, I learned that everyone is tough and even if you raced your butt off to the line, some guys would still beat you and then steal your lunch money. Since starting back running in Tennessee, the only time I've been in a kick is when Ryan Snellen beat me at the Fangtastic 5k this past February. So I was excited at the oppurtunity to test my manhood for the next twenty or so seconds.
I crossed the line in 11th place in 25:33 with a 4:45 last .97, and ended up with my t-shirt. It was a little bittersweet because if I would have run 2.5 seconds faster, I would have been 7th, which I think I could have done. But then again, if I would have run a little over 2.5 seconds slower, I would have been 14th. But we did beat Vanderbilt, which I was happy about.
One of my high school runners on his way to the Vandy game came to watch me run. Within a minute of receiving the shirt, I realized that I have too many shirts as it is, so I gave it to him. It's funny how little extrinsic rewards like a shirt, medal, etc., motivate you to achieve a certain task, but after you receive the reward, you realize it's meaningless and the real reward was completing the task.
All in all, it was a pretty good day at the office. I feel like this was a better performance than my Crazy 8's and Goodlettsville Classic 4 Miler even though I'm really rusty right now. The plan now is to spend the next month or so trying to get some wheels before laying down my marathon-specific fitness.
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Goodlettsville Classic
This was the race I was most looking forward to. While Crazy 8's is a big race with a lot of top competition, the Goodlettsville Classic takes place at Moss Wright Park, where I do most of my training and feels like it's my "home" race. There's also several guys who are somewhat my rivals who come down for it, so it's a race I really look forward to.
Lately, I've been getting in some really hard work. The six weeks prior to this race, I got in over 600 miles of running and decided to take a "down" week this week to be a little more fresh for this race. While I haven't done much work at the pace I wanted to run this race at, I was hoping my endurance would pull me through.
The course isn't really fast and makes somewhat of a figure 8 around the park. There is really only one hill, which is just after the second mile marker and is followed by a downhill. Last year, I ran this race in 21:16 and really wasn't happy with my performance. My goal for this race was to run as far under 20:00 as I could. I felt that I was a lot more fit than last year and with a 25:07 "bad race" 8k a couple of weeks ago, I felt that I wouldn't have too hard of a time breaking 20:00
With money to the top three runners, I was halfway expecting a random Kenyan to show up, and I knew Jef Scott and Nate Pennington were running. Chris Herren also planned on coming, so I felt I definitely would have some company to push me the whole way.
Chris didn't end up running but a Ugandan did and at the time, I didn't know what to expect from him. My pre-race plan was to run the first mile in around 4:50, hoping Nate would take it out hard because he took it out quickly at the Tom King Half. If I was fighting for the win, I was going to make a hard push after the downhill, which was about 2.5 miles into the race, and hope I mentally broke the other runners.
When the gun went off, Nate and I took the lead. The pace felt a little slower than I wanted but my legs felt really heavy. After about a half of a mile, I had a 1-2 second lead on Nate and kept that through the mile, which I hit in 5:01. I was frustrated with the split, so I tried to push again.
Shortly after the mile marker, you make your way onto the trail. At this point, the Ugandan guy (who I later found out was Patrick Cheptoek, who ran 22:58 at Crazy 8's) flew by me, so, I knew I was racing for second. I went through two miles in 10:04, and had about 6-7 seconds on Nate, Jef and Colin Johnson (college runner at UT-Martin). I really struggled on the uphill, sped up on the downhill and then picked it up again once I got back onto the trail.
My pre-race plan was to start to put the hammer down at this point but my legs just didn't feel like moving. Aerobically, I was feeling good, I just had some mushy legs. I guess I got really lazy in this mile, because I went through three miles in 15:19, which gave me a much slower, 5:15 third mile.
I was really frustrated with the split but was slowly putting increasing the gap on Jef and Colin (who were 3rd and 4th at this point), so I wasn't feeling like attacking. During the last mile, I put in a couple short pick-ups to keep my lead and finished up without killing myself. I wasn't working on my math while I was running, so I was expecting to run around 20:15 but when I crossed the line in 20:34, I was really frustrated. Patrick Cheptoek won in 19:24 and Jef Scott finished 3rd in 20:47.
That's only a little bit over 10 seconds a mile faster than last year, and at that point, I had a lot more room to improve than I do now. Granted I didn't race all-out until the finish line but even if I did, I couldn't have seem myself run much faster than 20:15 or so. The weather was also 80 degrees, which is about 9s a mile, using the calculator I use but calculators don't count for real times.
At the beginning of my speed phase, I felt like I was right at 15:00 5k track shape. At this point, I was hoping to be in 14:30 shape. I've run some mega miles the last few weeks but I'm just not firing on all cylinders right now. I have some small changes I'm going to make in my training these next couple of weeks but as of now, I'm way behind schedule.
I'll see how the next 3-4 weeks of training go and then make a decision about running Chicago for sure or taking a little down time and then going after 2:19 at Rocket City. Chicago is definitely what I prefer, so hopefully it works out.
Lately, I've been getting in some really hard work. The six weeks prior to this race, I got in over 600 miles of running and decided to take a "down" week this week to be a little more fresh for this race. While I haven't done much work at the pace I wanted to run this race at, I was hoping my endurance would pull me through.
The course isn't really fast and makes somewhat of a figure 8 around the park. There is really only one hill, which is just after the second mile marker and is followed by a downhill. Last year, I ran this race in 21:16 and really wasn't happy with my performance. My goal for this race was to run as far under 20:00 as I could. I felt that I was a lot more fit than last year and with a 25:07 "bad race" 8k a couple of weeks ago, I felt that I wouldn't have too hard of a time breaking 20:00
With money to the top three runners, I was halfway expecting a random Kenyan to show up, and I knew Jef Scott and Nate Pennington were running. Chris Herren also planned on coming, so I felt I definitely would have some company to push me the whole way.
Chris didn't end up running but a Ugandan did and at the time, I didn't know what to expect from him. My pre-race plan was to run the first mile in around 4:50, hoping Nate would take it out hard because he took it out quickly at the Tom King Half. If I was fighting for the win, I was going to make a hard push after the downhill, which was about 2.5 miles into the race, and hope I mentally broke the other runners.
When the gun went off, Nate and I took the lead. The pace felt a little slower than I wanted but my legs felt really heavy. After about a half of a mile, I had a 1-2 second lead on Nate and kept that through the mile, which I hit in 5:01. I was frustrated with the split, so I tried to push again.
Shortly after the mile marker, you make your way onto the trail. At this point, the Ugandan guy (who I later found out was Patrick Cheptoek, who ran 22:58 at Crazy 8's) flew by me, so, I knew I was racing for second. I went through two miles in 10:04, and had about 6-7 seconds on Nate, Jef and Colin Johnson (college runner at UT-Martin). I really struggled on the uphill, sped up on the downhill and then picked it up again once I got back onto the trail.
My pre-race plan was to start to put the hammer down at this point but my legs just didn't feel like moving. Aerobically, I was feeling good, I just had some mushy legs. I guess I got really lazy in this mile, because I went through three miles in 15:19, which gave me a much slower, 5:15 third mile.
I was really frustrated with the split but was slowly putting increasing the gap on Jef and Colin (who were 3rd and 4th at this point), so I wasn't feeling like attacking. During the last mile, I put in a couple short pick-ups to keep my lead and finished up without killing myself. I wasn't working on my math while I was running, so I was expecting to run around 20:15 but when I crossed the line in 20:34, I was really frustrated. Patrick Cheptoek won in 19:24 and Jef Scott finished 3rd in 20:47.
That's only a little bit over 10 seconds a mile faster than last year, and at that point, I had a lot more room to improve than I do now. Granted I didn't race all-out until the finish line but even if I did, I couldn't have seem myself run much faster than 20:15 or so. The weather was also 80 degrees, which is about 9s a mile, using the calculator I use but calculators don't count for real times.
At the beginning of my speed phase, I felt like I was right at 15:00 5k track shape. At this point, I was hoping to be in 14:30 shape. I've run some mega miles the last few weeks but I'm just not firing on all cylinders right now. I have some small changes I'm going to make in my training these next couple of weeks but as of now, I'm way behind schedule.
I'll see how the next 3-4 weeks of training go and then make a decision about running Chicago for sure or taking a little down time and then going after 2:19 at Rocket City. Chicago is definitely what I prefer, so hopefully it works out.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Crazy 8's
With my 5k debacle a couple of weeks ago, it's time for my first real race. I've gotten in some pretty decent training and after this weekend, will have over 500 miles in over the last five weeks. My "A" goal is to run 24:30 with my "B" goal being 24:59. However, while I've gotten in a lot of workouts between 5:10-5:20 pace, I've done very little running at under 5:00 pace, so I didn't know how well my body would to respond to sub 5:00 pace.
Crazy 8's is advertised as "the world's fastest 8k." While the course itself isn't really fast, the world record (22:02) was set at this race and they always have a very competitive field, full of top-level Kenyans. While it's nice to win some money in a small-town road race every once in a while, the races where I have guys constantly pushing me from behind and guys to constantly chase down are the races I enjoy the most. Winning is nice but I'll take constant battles any day of the week.
The race takes place in Kingsport, TN, which is about a 4.5 hour drive from Nashville. I headed down to Chris Herren's place and then we left for the race. Luckily the race took place at 9:58pm, so it gave us plenty of time to get there and relax. At about 6:00, we made it to our hotel and did a short one mile jog to loosen up our legs from the car ride. I was feeling really tired, so I took a short nap and then headed to the lobby for a couple of cups for coffee.
About 8:30, we headed down to the race and at 9:15, started warming-up. It was pitch black at this point and Chris and I got in about 20 minutes of running. I then did some drills and got in several strides. I felt really sluggish on my warm-up but was still expecting to run very well.
My race plan was to go out in about 4:50 and key off Chris a good bit. He's been running some hard workouts and has gotten in several races, so I figured he would be a lot more racing sharp than me.
Eventually, it was time to race and when the gun went off, everyone took off. With the lead pack most likely running the first mile in around 4:20, I was nervous that I would start too fast, so I tried to have some restraint. I was probably in about 50th place or so a couple of minutes in, but started to reel in a lot of people and make my way up the pack.
Start of the race
Chris and I were leading the main chase pack and we hit the mile together in 5:00. I was a little mad because I thought we were running well under 5:00 pace for sure. After the split, I put in a surge and shortly afterward, Chris put a few second gap on me and I hit the two mile a little bit behind him in 10:06, with a 5:06 2nd mile. I was a little upset I was over 25:00 pace, so I tried to surge again and ended up catching Chris and by the 3rd mile (15:10 split), had about a five second lead.
Right at the start of the third mile, there was a 1/3 mile gradual uphill. While it wasn't too steep, I definitely felt it and started struggling towards the end. I expected Chris to pass me back but I still had a few second lead. At this point I was getting frustrated because while Chris was pushing me from behind, the person ahead of me had a good 20 second or so lead on me, so it was hard to try and chase him. Shortly before the fourth mile, I was confused at a turn and had to ask which way to go, which cost me a couple of seconds. That didn't help my cause because I ran a 5:17 that mile and split 20:27 for four miles. At this point, I thought my shot at sub 25 was gone and because I wasn't making up any ground on the guy ahead of me, my goal was to try and pull away from Chris because he was hot on my heels.
Right at the start of the last mile, my stomach started to ache, probably as a result of the coffee. I tried to forget about it and really work on turning my legs over. It felt like my legs were moving really quickly but I couldn't get that deep-down burning in my legs and muscle weakness that I was hoping to have at this point. After a couple of minutes, I could tell I was slowly gaining on the guy ahead of me, so I did my best to reel him in. I could tell I was getting close to the end and when someone yelled I was at 23:53, I started to really move because I wanted to break 25:00.
I started to quickly gain on the guy ahead of me but once I got on the football field for the last 75 yards or so, I could see the clock approach 25:00, and knew my shot was gone. I ended up crossing the line in 25:07 with a 4:40 for the last .97 miles to finish in 17th place, with the guy ahead of me in 24:59 and Chris in 25:23.
Crossing the line in 25:07 on the race clock
Overall, I was really frustrated with this race. I've been running my tempo runs feeling pretty comfortable at under 5:15 pace, so I definitely thought I could run under 5:00 pace. While I closed up really well, I didn't hurt as badly as I should have after crossing the line. Races are about making your body suffer and going out on your shield and I didn't do that too well. I had way too much left and felt like I could have run at least one more mile at 5:00 pace.
I guess it's easy to make excuses. I had a long car ride that day, I had pretty heavy legs from the past few weeks of training, I never really had anyone to chase down and I have trouble running fast at night. Being a bad night racer sounds stupid but when I'm in pain in races, I will focus on the farthest thing ahead of me and not let up on the effort until I get there. After I make it to that spot, I reset my mind and find a new focal point. But during the race, I couldn't really see that far ahead of me. But I always tell my kids I coach that anybody who looks for an excuse will find one. But if you're truly looking to improve yourself, you have to identify what you as an individual did wrong and work to improve that rather than find excuses to justify a bad performance.
I'm halfway through my speed phase and in another four weeks, I need to be at the point where I can run another eight miles at this pace. I definitely have some work to do, will make a tweak or two in my training and will make sure I run my next important race, the Goodlettsville Classic on July 30th, on some fresher legs. At least it's not run at night...
But besides the bad race, overall, I really enjoyed Crazy 8's. Racing through the candle-lit streets at night time was really cool, there was tons of crowd support, things were run very well, and it was just a cool and fun environment overall. And how many races do you run where results are being updated during the race? I definitely plan on going back next year (and hopefully will race better).
Crazy 8's is advertised as "the world's fastest 8k." While the course itself isn't really fast, the world record (22:02) was set at this race and they always have a very competitive field, full of top-level Kenyans. While it's nice to win some money in a small-town road race every once in a while, the races where I have guys constantly pushing me from behind and guys to constantly chase down are the races I enjoy the most. Winning is nice but I'll take constant battles any day of the week.
The race takes place in Kingsport, TN, which is about a 4.5 hour drive from Nashville. I headed down to Chris Herren's place and then we left for the race. Luckily the race took place at 9:58pm, so it gave us plenty of time to get there and relax. At about 6:00, we made it to our hotel and did a short one mile jog to loosen up our legs from the car ride. I was feeling really tired, so I took a short nap and then headed to the lobby for a couple of cups for coffee.
About 8:30, we headed down to the race and at 9:15, started warming-up. It was pitch black at this point and Chris and I got in about 20 minutes of running. I then did some drills and got in several strides. I felt really sluggish on my warm-up but was still expecting to run very well.
My race plan was to go out in about 4:50 and key off Chris a good bit. He's been running some hard workouts and has gotten in several races, so I figured he would be a lot more racing sharp than me.
Eventually, it was time to race and when the gun went off, everyone took off. With the lead pack most likely running the first mile in around 4:20, I was nervous that I would start too fast, so I tried to have some restraint. I was probably in about 50th place or so a couple of minutes in, but started to reel in a lot of people and make my way up the pack.
Start of the race
Right at the start of the third mile, there was a 1/3 mile gradual uphill. While it wasn't too steep, I definitely felt it and started struggling towards the end. I expected Chris to pass me back but I still had a few second lead. At this point I was getting frustrated because while Chris was pushing me from behind, the person ahead of me had a good 20 second or so lead on me, so it was hard to try and chase him. Shortly before the fourth mile, I was confused at a turn and had to ask which way to go, which cost me a couple of seconds. That didn't help my cause because I ran a 5:17 that mile and split 20:27 for four miles. At this point, I thought my shot at sub 25 was gone and because I wasn't making up any ground on the guy ahead of me, my goal was to try and pull away from Chris because he was hot on my heels.
Right at the start of the last mile, my stomach started to ache, probably as a result of the coffee. I tried to forget about it and really work on turning my legs over. It felt like my legs were moving really quickly but I couldn't get that deep-down burning in my legs and muscle weakness that I was hoping to have at this point. After a couple of minutes, I could tell I was slowly gaining on the guy ahead of me, so I did my best to reel him in. I could tell I was getting close to the end and when someone yelled I was at 23:53, I started to really move because I wanted to break 25:00.
I started to quickly gain on the guy ahead of me but once I got on the football field for the last 75 yards or so, I could see the clock approach 25:00, and knew my shot was gone. I ended up crossing the line in 25:07 with a 4:40 for the last .97 miles to finish in 17th place, with the guy ahead of me in 24:59 and Chris in 25:23.
Crossing the line in 25:07 on the race clock
I guess it's easy to make excuses. I had a long car ride that day, I had pretty heavy legs from the past few weeks of training, I never really had anyone to chase down and I have trouble running fast at night. Being a bad night racer sounds stupid but when I'm in pain in races, I will focus on the farthest thing ahead of me and not let up on the effort until I get there. After I make it to that spot, I reset my mind and find a new focal point. But during the race, I couldn't really see that far ahead of me. But I always tell my kids I coach that anybody who looks for an excuse will find one. But if you're truly looking to improve yourself, you have to identify what you as an individual did wrong and work to improve that rather than find excuses to justify a bad performance.
I'm halfway through my speed phase and in another four weeks, I need to be at the point where I can run another eight miles at this pace. I definitely have some work to do, will make a tweak or two in my training and will make sure I run my next important race, the Goodlettsville Classic on July 30th, on some fresher legs. At least it's not run at night...
But besides the bad race, overall, I really enjoyed Crazy 8's. Racing through the candle-lit streets at night time was really cool, there was tons of crowd support, things were run very well, and it was just a cool and fun environment overall. And how many races do you run where results are being updated during the race? I definitely plan on going back next year (and hopefully will race better).
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Indepedence Day 5k
I decided to make this the first race of my Chicago Marathon build-up. It's two weeks before Crazy 8's (which is a really big/fast race) and gives me the chance to get work out some of my racing rust. This race is usually really low-key, so I'm not expecting to be pressured. However, I'd like to still get in a solid effort and run around 15:30.
The race is in White House and the course heads straight down the greenway and turns around by the high school. This means the first half is a net downhill, before turning around and going back the way you came, which includes a pretty nasty uphill. It's actually a pretty slow course but based off my recent workouts, I still think I could take a stab at sub 15:30.
I got in my usual warm-up of 5:00 slow jogging, 5:00 normal speed and 5:00 medium speed, followed by several fast strides. Low and behold, shortly before the race, I saw a Kenyan warming-up. I didn't know who he was and he told me he could wasn't in shape and was hoping to run around 16:00. I knew he was probably much fitter than that, which made me a little nervous.
When I headed to the starting line, I didn't see the Kenyan anywhere. The gun went off and I thought he must have missed the race. I took the race out pretty slowly and worked into my rhythm by about a minute in. The good thing about the greenway is that there are markers every quarter mile. I split my watch at the start of the greenway and focused on keeping a hard effort.
A little over half a mile in, I looked over my shoulder and saw the Kenyan several seconds back. I knew he was gaining on me, so I decided to change-up my strategy. Most likely, when he missed the start, two things happened that negatively affected his race: 1.) Obviously he was already at a several second disadvantage, from the get-go and 2.) Because he started late, instead of being relaxed and sticking to his original strategy, he was probably freaking out a bit and trying to play catch-up, rather than focusing on proper pacing.
Because of that, I decided to slow down the pace a hair, to let him catch me more quickly. I felt if he could tell he was reeling me in, he would continue to press down on the gas faster than he wanted to and would feel less threatened by me. I went through the mile in 4:50, which was right on target and shortly after that, he caught me. My plan was to wait a minute or two and then push the downhills and drop him on the uphills on the way back, hoping his faster than expected first mile wore him out more than he anticipated.
We stuck together through 1.5 miles and after crossing Tyree Springs, we saw a water table with some high schoolers sitting by it. I was pretty certain this was the turnaround last year, so I asked if this was the turnaround spot, but they said it wasn't and to keep on going straight. I looked at my watch and we were under 7:30, so I thought the turnaround could be a little further down.
We continued to race but after a couple of minutes, I knew we were off-course. I then asked if we should turnaround, but he wanted to come on going. We then started backing off the pace and just made small-talk. I found out he was Festus Chemaoi, who just graduated from MTSU and has PR's of 1:48 in the 800m and 14:17 in the 5k, so he was definitely legit.
After about three miles in, we eventually decided to turn around and head back the way we came. We ended up finishing in 131st and 132nd place in times of 38:54 and 38:55. It turns out several other people went the wrong way and eventually one guy argued with the kids because they insisted they were not at the turnaround table. If that guy didn't stop, I can't imagine how much of a disaster it could have been.
It was definitely a frustrating race because it cost me a chance at $100, an opportunity for a fast time and the fact that the kids at the turnaround table's only job was to have people run around a cone and they couldn't even figure that out. Oh well, back to training.
The race is in White House and the course heads straight down the greenway and turns around by the high school. This means the first half is a net downhill, before turning around and going back the way you came, which includes a pretty nasty uphill. It's actually a pretty slow course but based off my recent workouts, I still think I could take a stab at sub 15:30.
I got in my usual warm-up of 5:00 slow jogging, 5:00 normal speed and 5:00 medium speed, followed by several fast strides. Low and behold, shortly before the race, I saw a Kenyan warming-up. I didn't know who he was and he told me he could wasn't in shape and was hoping to run around 16:00. I knew he was probably much fitter than that, which made me a little nervous.
When I headed to the starting line, I didn't see the Kenyan anywhere. The gun went off and I thought he must have missed the race. I took the race out pretty slowly and worked into my rhythm by about a minute in. The good thing about the greenway is that there are markers every quarter mile. I split my watch at the start of the greenway and focused on keeping a hard effort.
A little over half a mile in, I looked over my shoulder and saw the Kenyan several seconds back. I knew he was gaining on me, so I decided to change-up my strategy. Most likely, when he missed the start, two things happened that negatively affected his race: 1.) Obviously he was already at a several second disadvantage, from the get-go and 2.) Because he started late, instead of being relaxed and sticking to his original strategy, he was probably freaking out a bit and trying to play catch-up, rather than focusing on proper pacing.
Because of that, I decided to slow down the pace a hair, to let him catch me more quickly. I felt if he could tell he was reeling me in, he would continue to press down on the gas faster than he wanted to and would feel less threatened by me. I went through the mile in 4:50, which was right on target and shortly after that, he caught me. My plan was to wait a minute or two and then push the downhills and drop him on the uphills on the way back, hoping his faster than expected first mile wore him out more than he anticipated.
We stuck together through 1.5 miles and after crossing Tyree Springs, we saw a water table with some high schoolers sitting by it. I was pretty certain this was the turnaround last year, so I asked if this was the turnaround spot, but they said it wasn't and to keep on going straight. I looked at my watch and we were under 7:30, so I thought the turnaround could be a little further down.
We continued to race but after a couple of minutes, I knew we were off-course. I then asked if we should turnaround, but he wanted to come on going. We then started backing off the pace and just made small-talk. I found out he was Festus Chemaoi, who just graduated from MTSU and has PR's of 1:48 in the 800m and 14:17 in the 5k, so he was definitely legit.
After about three miles in, we eventually decided to turn around and head back the way we came. We ended up finishing in 131st and 132nd place in times of 38:54 and 38:55. It turns out several other people went the wrong way and eventually one guy argued with the kids because they insisted they were not at the turnaround table. If that guy didn't stop, I can't imagine how much of a disaster it could have been.
It was definitely a frustrating race because it cost me a chance at $100, an opportunity for a fast time and the fact that the kids at the turnaround table's only job was to have people run around a cone and they couldn't even figure that out. Oh well, back to training.
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Country Music Marathon Review
The Country Music Marathon was the last race of my "spring season." It was my second marathon and I took a more laid-back approach to it. With teaching, coaching and life in general, I knew I would not have the time to get in the marathon-specific workouts I needed. I was able to get in seven weeks of 95 miles or more, with two of those being right at 110 miles but I was only able to get in a few "real" marathon workouts. I knew I was very fit half-marathon wise but with the lack of marathon workouts, I knew there was a very strong chance I would crash hard if I didn't race smart. My main goal was to not put much pressure on myself and try and finish as the first Davidson County runner. I knew the course would be a lot more hilly than Rocket City (and I hate hills) but if I raced patiently, I thought I could have a shot at sub 2:30.
The days leading up to the race were incredibly busy. Thursday, I was on the go from 6am until after 5:30pm and when I got home, I had to mow the lawn and then do some unpacking. On Friday, I was able to sleep in for a bit because I took a personal day from work but then had to do a ton of errands and then spent the rest of the afternoon/early evening at a track meet. Stadium food is less than ideal the night before a marathon but you just have to make do. Not to mention "carbo-loading" is mainly hype. It was a mentally draining last two days when I just wanted to relax before my race.
I've heard horror stories about how early you have to wake-up and leave to get to the marathon in time. With over 30,000 people in the race, logistics has to be a nightmare. Luckily my friend Scott Bennett, lived a little over a mile from the start of the race. This was a HUGE relief to me because that meant I could sleep in for an 1.5 hours and not have to worry about battling traffic.
When I went to bed, I felt like absolute crap. The track meet wreaked havoc on my allergies, my head was killing me, my eyes hurt and I just wanted to go to bed. I went to bed over an hour earlier than planned and Scott gave me a Claritin Liqui-Gel, which I've never used before. When I woke up, I felt like a million bucks. I ate my regular breakfast of Mom's Best Toasted Cinnamon Squares, and added an apple cinnamon pop-tart and a Lemonzest Luna Bar. Instead of my token coffee, took a 200mg caffeine pill about an hour before the race (to help speed the body's ability to burn fats for fuel, saving carbohydrates in the process).
Race-time weather conditions were almost perfect. There was barely any wind and the temperature was just over 50 degrees with it climbing a little over 60 by the race's end. Scott jogged with me to the start and I checked in my gear bag and hung around until it was time to head to the line. Luckily my race number gave me a spot right on the starting line. The amount of people there was insane. I looked over my shoulder and the street was packed for as far as I could see.
Unlike the shorter races, the marathon requires the racer to take-in fuel during the race. During half-marathons or less, my body easily has enough carbohydrates to get me to the finish line, so I don't need to worry about taking any gels or other forms of fuel. Just as Scott hooked me up with a place to stay, I had some friends helping me out with my fueling during the race. During the marathon, I like to take 4-5 GU packs mixed in empty Tummie-Yummie bottles. Scott was handing me a bottle at around four and nine miles, Ted Towse was handing me one a little past halfway and Doug Boomer was hooking me up at around 17 and 20 miles. Having people help me out during the race was a huge stress reliever and enabled me to place all of my focus on the race. It also gave me something to look forward to and helped me divide the first 20 miles into five different sections.
When the gun went off, Edwin Romero, from Colombia shot off. He was hoping to run under 2:15, so I just let him go. I was seeded 6th and I thought with a patient race, I could have a shot at third. I was hoping to not only be the first Davidson County runner but the first Tennessee runner as well (an additional $500). There was a Kenyan guy who now lives in Chattanooga battling me for that money, so I knew I had to step up my game a little more than planned. I was in a pack with a few others guys and tried to relax because I had a long journey ahead of me.
I missed the first mile marker but a guy I was running with said it was right around 5:20. This made me a little nervous because my pre-race plan was to run around 5:40-5:45 a mile for the first half of the race. However, I felt relaxed and knew the first two miles were gradually downhill before starting the uphill climbs, so it was no big deal. The second mile was even faster, with a 5:10 mile split. I was still in a pack a good bit behind Edwin, so I just tried to tuck in and be as patient as possible. In the next mile, David Kellum (eventual winner) took off and I let him go. I broke away with Brent Martin, who had a 2:23 PR and Giovanny Amador, who had a 2:22 PR, followed us for a bit before falling back. Brent was running a little faster than me but I was still clicking off sub 5:20s, so I didn't fret about it. I knew I was running too fast and the faster you run, the more carbohydrates your body burns, so I made myself run behind him. He slowly increased his lead over the next few miles but I had a feeling I would run in to him again.
I went through the first 10 miles in 53:18. Shortly after that, Giovanny passed me. I debated going with him but I knew the pace was still too fast, so I let him go. I figured he would beat me anyway, so I didn't worry about it. Brent was about 10-15 seconds ahead of me at this point and I really wanted to chase him down but I was worried about what needed to be done 10 miles down the road, not seek instant gratification. I saw Jeff Edmonds on the side of the course and he ran with me for a minute or so. This served as a good motivator and mental refresher.
Shortly before halfway, I saw Giovanny stop and grab his calf. I went by him and figured it was just the beginning of the end for him. I hit halfway at 70:10, which was a 27 second half marathon personal best. I was still feeling really good and was done with most of the hard hills, so I was really pleased. The 14th mile included a long, boring stretch with a headwind most of the way and a pretty steep hill. I only split 5:53 this mile but made up several seconds on Brent, so I figured it was now time to go for the pass. I caught him within a couple of minutes and I guess I got a little too excited because I split 5:17 for that mile.
Once I passed him, it was a long, lonely road for quite a while. I couldn't see Edwin or David at all and shortly after I passed him, Brent dropped out. I was pretty certain I had third place locked up and I was way ahead of my planned pace, so I decided to relax a little a bit so I wouldn't blow up too badly later. In the 17th mile, you run across the pedestrian bridge and run right by the eventual finish line. There was a ton of crowd support there, so it served as a great temporary motivator. After running past the stadium, it was time to head out towards Shelby Bottoms. I had a really bad race at the Tom King Half Marathon, which went down pretty much the same route, so I was hoping I wouldn't have a repeat performance.
In the 18th mile, I could tell I was running a little low on gas. I was still running pretty decent mile splits but my legs started to feel a little drained. I also started getting a little bit of a side stitch, so I decided to relax a bit. Boomer met me at just under 20 miles for my last GU of the race. I drunk a couple of sips and felt like I was going to get sick, so I just threw it down and kept on running. I hit 1:48:21 for my 20 mile split, which was a huge motivator. If I could just run 5:45s, I would break 2:24. Since I averaged 5:25 a mile up to this point, I thought I had it in the bag. I decided I would run the next four miles under 5:40 and then hammer my last two miles and see if I could run under 2:23. 2:22 something sounds a lot better than almost 2:24. My next two miles were 5:37 and 5:41, so I was on target. However, my legs were getting even more drained and I felt like I was almost running on empty. I only had a little over four miles left at this point but I had a feeling I might be about to run into that "wall" I've heard so much about.
A little before 24 miles, I could tell I was cutting down on his lead. I ran down a short downhill and noticed my quads were pretty shot. I looked at my watch again and saw his lead was down to almost thirty seconds. I then knew I could at least catch him. How he would respond when I pulled up to him was somewhat of an unknown but I knew I would at least find out.
I was quickly cutting down on the lead and he was only about 15 seconds ahead of me with the 25 mile marker in sight. When I made my final push to catch him, my stomach got a little mad at me and I had several dry heaves. When they stopped, I tried to push again and that's when things got ugly. I started throwing up and had visions of Bob Kempanien in my head. I knew puking while running would give me some serious street cred but the worst part was that it was in front of a bunch of high school cheerleaders. When I was getting sick, my legs just wanted me to stop and walk but I was so close to Edwin and since I ain't no punk, I decided I had to catch him.
I finally caught him a little past the 25 mile marker and then tried to continue to push the pace. He didn't try to fight at all and I noticed he was falling back more and more. I then knew I had second place locked up and when I hit the 26 mile marker, it read 2:23:00. I really hate running a low "minute" in the marathon. If you run 2:23:59.99, everyone will call you a 2:23 marathoner. However, if you run 2:24:00, everyone will call you a 2:24 marathoner. Just a millisecond can totally change your identity and I didn't want to run just over 2:24 and be called a 2:24 guy, so I tried to sprint. It felt like I was flying and I had a feeling I was going to be a 2:23 guy. When I turned the final corner and saw the clock already at 2:24, I knew my fate had been sealed.
I crossed the line at 2:24:10 (my final "sprint" was at 6:00 pace) and immediately laid on the ground. I stood up and tried to find Mary but my legs were hurting so badly. I sat down on the ground beside her and talked to Trent Rosenbloom (the famed Flying Monkey Marathon man) and he made sure I wasn't going to die. I decided to walk to the medical tent to see if they could give me a massage or something but I just laid there for about ten minutes before getting bored and gimping back to Mary.
I was totally pumped about my race but I felt like death. This easily surpassed last year's R.C. Cola Moon Pie 10 Mile Race as the most dead I've been after a race. What made things worse was that the place to get my gear bag was over 1/4 of a mile away and it took me quite a while to limp over there.
The next day was even worse (except for winning trivia night at Cabana's) and my legs were insanely sore until Tuesday with all soreness being gone by Friday.
After it's all said and done, I'm really happy with this race. I gave myself about a 50/50 shot of breaking 2:30 and I feel like this time is worth 2:22 or under on the Rocket City course I ran 2:27:08 4.5 months prior. Finshing in 2nd place overall and being the first Tennessee and Davidson County runner also will help with the baby bills.
It's now time to chill out before making an assault on the Olympic Marathon Trials standard of 2:19:00 at the Chicago Marathon on October 9th. I'm not sure how realistic it is but I'll find out. I might even go to bed earlier and cut down on the junk food...
Mile Marker: Mile Split-Overall Time
1: 5:20-5:20
2: 5:10-10:30
3: 5:22-15:52
4: 5:22-21:14
5: 5:25-26:39
6: 5:12-31:51
7: 5:18-37:09
8: 5:24-42:34
9: 5:18-47:52
10: 5:20-53:12
11: 5:20-58:32
12: 5:33-1:04:05
13: 5:35-1:09:35
14: 5:28-1:15:03
15: 5:53-1:20:56
16: 5:17-1:26:13
17: 5:29-1:31:42
18: 5:37-1:37:19
19: 5:37-1:42:56
20: 5:25-1:48:21
21: 5:37-1:53:58
22: 5:41-1:59:39
23: 5:46-2:05:25
24: 5:50-2:11:15
25: 5:45-2:17:00
26: 6:00-2:23:00
26.2: 1:10- 2:24:10
The days leading up to the race were incredibly busy. Thursday, I was on the go from 6am until after 5:30pm and when I got home, I had to mow the lawn and then do some unpacking. On Friday, I was able to sleep in for a bit because I took a personal day from work but then had to do a ton of errands and then spent the rest of the afternoon/early evening at a track meet. Stadium food is less than ideal the night before a marathon but you just have to make do. Not to mention "carbo-loading" is mainly hype. It was a mentally draining last two days when I just wanted to relax before my race.
I've heard horror stories about how early you have to wake-up and leave to get to the marathon in time. With over 30,000 people in the race, logistics has to be a nightmare. Luckily my friend Scott Bennett, lived a little over a mile from the start of the race. This was a HUGE relief to me because that meant I could sleep in for an 1.5 hours and not have to worry about battling traffic.
When I went to bed, I felt like absolute crap. The track meet wreaked havoc on my allergies, my head was killing me, my eyes hurt and I just wanted to go to bed. I went to bed over an hour earlier than planned and Scott gave me a Claritin Liqui-Gel, which I've never used before. When I woke up, I felt like a million bucks. I ate my regular breakfast of Mom's Best Toasted Cinnamon Squares, and added an apple cinnamon pop-tart and a Lemonzest Luna Bar. Instead of my token coffee, took a 200mg caffeine pill about an hour before the race (to help speed the body's ability to burn fats for fuel, saving carbohydrates in the process).
Race-time weather conditions were almost perfect. There was barely any wind and the temperature was just over 50 degrees with it climbing a little over 60 by the race's end. Scott jogged with me to the start and I checked in my gear bag and hung around until it was time to head to the line. Luckily my race number gave me a spot right on the starting line. The amount of people there was insane. I looked over my shoulder and the street was packed for as far as I could see.
When the gun went off, Edwin Romero, from Colombia shot off. He was hoping to run under 2:15, so I just let him go. I was seeded 6th and I thought with a patient race, I could have a shot at third. I was hoping to not only be the first Davidson County runner but the first Tennessee runner as well (an additional $500). There was a Kenyan guy who now lives in Chattanooga battling me for that money, so I knew I had to step up my game a little more than planned. I was in a pack with a few others guys and tried to relax because I had a long journey ahead of me.
I missed the first mile marker but a guy I was running with said it was right around 5:20. This made me a little nervous because my pre-race plan was to run around 5:40-5:45 a mile for the first half of the race. However, I felt relaxed and knew the first two miles were gradually downhill before starting the uphill climbs, so it was no big deal. The second mile was even faster, with a 5:10 mile split. I was still in a pack a good bit behind Edwin, so I just tried to tuck in and be as patient as possible. In the next mile, David Kellum (eventual winner) took off and I let him go. I broke away with Brent Martin, who had a 2:23 PR and Giovanny Amador, who had a 2:22 PR, followed us for a bit before falling back. Brent was running a little faster than me but I was still clicking off sub 5:20s, so I didn't fret about it. I knew I was running too fast and the faster you run, the more carbohydrates your body burns, so I made myself run behind him. He slowly increased his lead over the next few miles but I had a feeling I would run in to him again.
I went through the first 10 miles in 53:18. Shortly after that, Giovanny passed me. I debated going with him but I knew the pace was still too fast, so I let him go. I figured he would beat me anyway, so I didn't worry about it. Brent was about 10-15 seconds ahead of me at this point and I really wanted to chase him down but I was worried about what needed to be done 10 miles down the road, not seek instant gratification. I saw Jeff Edmonds on the side of the course and he ran with me for a minute or so. This served as a good motivator and mental refresher.
Shortly before halfway, I saw Giovanny stop and grab his calf. I went by him and figured it was just the beginning of the end for him. I hit halfway at 70:10, which was a 27 second half marathon personal best. I was still feeling really good and was done with most of the hard hills, so I was really pleased. The 14th mile included a long, boring stretch with a headwind most of the way and a pretty steep hill. I only split 5:53 this mile but made up several seconds on Brent, so I figured it was now time to go for the pass. I caught him within a couple of minutes and I guess I got a little too excited because I split 5:17 for that mile.
Once I passed him, it was a long, lonely road for quite a while. I couldn't see Edwin or David at all and shortly after I passed him, Brent dropped out. I was pretty certain I had third place locked up and I was way ahead of my planned pace, so I decided to relax a little a bit so I wouldn't blow up too badly later. In the 17th mile, you run across the pedestrian bridge and run right by the eventual finish line. There was a ton of crowd support there, so it served as a great temporary motivator. After running past the stadium, it was time to head out towards Shelby Bottoms. I had a really bad race at the Tom King Half Marathon, which went down pretty much the same route, so I was hoping I wouldn't have a repeat performance.
At this point, I've been running completely alone for nearly 10 miles. However, I did have one of my Hendersonville Running Club buddies, Skip Alcorn, out there on the bike as a course guide. We really didn't talk or anything because my mind needed to stay focused on the task at hand but having him there really helped me out because it gave me a since of familiarity and I didn't feel so alone. Just when I felt like I was about to completely shut down, I noticed Edwin in the distance. I used my watch to estimate how far ahead he was of me and when I hit the 23rd mile, he had about 75 seconds on me. That's a pretty huge chunk of time but he had went out insanely fast and was finding out how cruel glycogen depletion can be. I wasn't going to attack the pace or anything, but I definitely had him in my sights.
A little before 24 miles, I could tell I was cutting down on his lead. I ran down a short downhill and noticed my quads were pretty shot. I looked at my watch again and saw his lead was down to almost thirty seconds. I then knew I could at least catch him. How he would respond when I pulled up to him was somewhat of an unknown but I knew I would at least find out.
I was quickly cutting down on the lead and he was only about 15 seconds ahead of me with the 25 mile marker in sight. When I made my final push to catch him, my stomach got a little mad at me and I had several dry heaves. When they stopped, I tried to push again and that's when things got ugly. I started throwing up and had visions of Bob Kempanien in my head. I knew puking while running would give me some serious street cred but the worst part was that it was in front of a bunch of high school cheerleaders. When I was getting sick, my legs just wanted me to stop and walk but I was so close to Edwin and since I ain't no punk, I decided I had to catch him.
I was totally pumped about my race but I felt like death. This easily surpassed last year's R.C. Cola Moon Pie 10 Mile Race as the most dead I've been after a race. What made things worse was that the place to get my gear bag was over 1/4 of a mile away and it took me quite a while to limp over there.
After it's all said and done, I'm really happy with this race. I gave myself about a 50/50 shot of breaking 2:30 and I feel like this time is worth 2:22 or under on the Rocket City course I ran 2:27:08 4.5 months prior. Finshing in 2nd place overall and being the first Tennessee and Davidson County runner also will help with the baby bills.
It's now time to chill out before making an assault on the Olympic Marathon Trials standard of 2:19:00 at the Chicago Marathon on October 9th. I'm not sure how realistic it is but I'll find out. I might even go to bed earlier and cut down on the junk food...
Mile Marker: Mile Split-Overall Time
1: 5:20-5:20
2: 5:10-10:30
3: 5:22-15:52
4: 5:22-21:14
5: 5:25-26:39
6: 5:12-31:51
7: 5:18-37:09
8: 5:24-42:34
9: 5:18-47:52
10: 5:20-53:12
11: 5:20-58:32
12: 5:33-1:04:05
13: 5:35-1:09:35
14: 5:28-1:15:03
15: 5:53-1:20:56
16: 5:17-1:26:13
17: 5:29-1:31:42
18: 5:37-1:37:19
19: 5:37-1:42:56
20: 5:25-1:48:21
21: 5:37-1:53:58
22: 5:41-1:59:39
23: 5:46-2:05:25
24: 5:50-2:11:15
25: 5:45-2:17:00
26: 6:00-2:23:00
26.2: 1:10- 2:24:10
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Purity Moosic City Dash 10k
With just two weeks to go until the marathon, this served as my last race. I was looking to run a pretty hard effort to get some confidence and sharpen my racing mentality. I heard the course was fast and if the weather was good, I was hoping to average under 5:00 pace. All of the lower/sub 15:00 guys were doing the 5k (Ryan Chastain, Ryan Snellen, Ted Towse and Dan Mueller) but I didn't know who would show up for the 10k.
I saw Alex Moore in the parking lot, who was also the defending 10k champion, so we warmed up together. The temperature was pretty good but it was insanely windy, so I didn't know how fast I would be able to run. However, I still planned running a solid effort, regardless of conditions.
The 5k ended before the 10k started, and Ryan Chastain beat Snellen by a few seconds to win in 15:06, which was pretty impressive in the windy conditions. When it was time for my race, I got in a few hard strides and was ready to run.
When the gun went off, I took the lead right away and tried to immediately get under 5:00 pace. Because of the incoming winds, the 10k course was run backwards this year in hopes that it would make it less brutal.
We had a nice tailwind at our backs for the first half mile or so but right after that, the wind was right in our faces. I could definitely tell I slowed down my speed but I tried to push through it and keep a hard effort. I hit the first mile in 5:01, which was slower than I wanted, but with the wind factored in, I knew it was pretty fast, so I tried to keep my rhythm.
I was hoping the wind would die down in the second mile but it was in my face the entire way. My two mile split was 10:29, which gave me a 5:28 second mile. That really frustrated me and I thought it killed my chances at running under 32:00. Shortly into the third mile, the course branched off onto the greenway. I knew this meant it would be flat for a while but the wind would be mostly hit-or-miss because the greenway is mostly a straight line.
Once I got onto the greenway, the wind was mostly at my side and partially in my face. It was annoying because it pushed my singlet and race number strongly to my right side, so my right arm was hitting the number with arm swing, which got really annoying. I hit my third mile in 15:39, which gave me a 5:09 split, but meant I was almost halfway done and still over 32:00 pace.
The fourth mile was entirely on the greenway and I found my rhythm again with a 4:59 mile split. The "Ryans", Ted, Dan and Justin ran their 5k cooldown on the greenway, and when I ran by them, they gave me some motivation to keep on pushing. Most of the 5th mile was still on the greenway and I kept my rhythm pretty well with a 5:01 split. Running my last two miles in 10:00 got me back under 32:00 pace, and if I ran under 5:20 for the last mile, I would be under 32:00.
Unfortunately, the last mile was mostly headwinds, but I was determined to break 32:00, so I pushed as hard as I could. To be honest, I thought I was running over 5:20 pace, but when I hit the six mile marker in 30:44 (5:05 split), I knew I had sub 32:00 in the bag. I kept my rhythm and finished in 31:45, winning by a few minutes.
The off-and-on winds made it really challenging. Whenever I felt the winds disappear, I would try to grit down and push. A couple of times I caught myself in cruise mode, and when that happened, I tried to pick it back up. I felt really strong aerobically but my legs felt like they were almost sprinting the whole time. I'll take that as a good sign because hopefully it means my gas tank is really strong while being a little inefficient at faster speeds, which is exactly what I want two weeks out from the marathon.
I also won 12 free Purity ice cream coupons and with a pregnant wife at the home, will be put to good use. All in all a pretty good day and a good confidence booster for the marathon in two weeks. I don't think I could have won the 5k, but I would have loved to race those guys in the 10k to see what would have happened.
And you couldn't have asked for a race to give you better post race food than ice cream, chocolate milk and hot, homemade macaroni and cheese.
I saw Alex Moore in the parking lot, who was also the defending 10k champion, so we warmed up together. The temperature was pretty good but it was insanely windy, so I didn't know how fast I would be able to run. However, I still planned running a solid effort, regardless of conditions.
The 5k ended before the 10k started, and Ryan Chastain beat Snellen by a few seconds to win in 15:06, which was pretty impressive in the windy conditions. When it was time for my race, I got in a few hard strides and was ready to run.
When the gun went off, I took the lead right away and tried to immediately get under 5:00 pace. Because of the incoming winds, the 10k course was run backwards this year in hopes that it would make it less brutal.
We had a nice tailwind at our backs for the first half mile or so but right after that, the wind was right in our faces. I could definitely tell I slowed down my speed but I tried to push through it and keep a hard effort. I hit the first mile in 5:01, which was slower than I wanted, but with the wind factored in, I knew it was pretty fast, so I tried to keep my rhythm.
I was hoping the wind would die down in the second mile but it was in my face the entire way. My two mile split was 10:29, which gave me a 5:28 second mile. That really frustrated me and I thought it killed my chances at running under 32:00. Shortly into the third mile, the course branched off onto the greenway. I knew this meant it would be flat for a while but the wind would be mostly hit-or-miss because the greenway is mostly a straight line.
Once I got onto the greenway, the wind was mostly at my side and partially in my face. It was annoying because it pushed my singlet and race number strongly to my right side, so my right arm was hitting the number with arm swing, which got really annoying. I hit my third mile in 15:39, which gave me a 5:09 split, but meant I was almost halfway done and still over 32:00 pace.
The fourth mile was entirely on the greenway and I found my rhythm again with a 4:59 mile split. The "Ryans", Ted, Dan and Justin ran their 5k cooldown on the greenway, and when I ran by them, they gave me some motivation to keep on pushing. Most of the 5th mile was still on the greenway and I kept my rhythm pretty well with a 5:01 split. Running my last two miles in 10:00 got me back under 32:00 pace, and if I ran under 5:20 for the last mile, I would be under 32:00.
Unfortunately, the last mile was mostly headwinds, but I was determined to break 32:00, so I pushed as hard as I could. To be honest, I thought I was running over 5:20 pace, but when I hit the six mile marker in 30:44 (5:05 split), I knew I had sub 32:00 in the bag. I kept my rhythm and finished in 31:45, winning by a few minutes.
The off-and-on winds made it really challenging. Whenever I felt the winds disappear, I would try to grit down and push. A couple of times I caught myself in cruise mode, and when that happened, I tried to pick it back up. I felt really strong aerobically but my legs felt like they were almost sprinting the whole time. I'll take that as a good sign because hopefully it means my gas tank is really strong while being a little inefficient at faster speeds, which is exactly what I want two weeks out from the marathon.
I also won 12 free Purity ice cream coupons and with a pregnant wife at the home, will be put to good use. All in all a pretty good day and a good confidence booster for the marathon in two weeks. I don't think I could have won the 5k, but I would have loved to race those guys in the 10k to see what would have happened.
And you couldn't have asked for a race to give you better post race food than ice cream, chocolate milk and hot, homemade macaroni and cheese.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
United Way Spring Into Health 5K Run/Walk
With only three weeks to go until the marathon, my goal for this race was to run around 16:00 and keep it fast but completely under control. I felt a little bit guilty because I drove over an hour to Shelbyville to run a small-town race while Micah Tirop, Ryan Snellen, Ted Towse, Josh Foss and Ryan Chastain were all racing the same race in Nashville. I would have loved to race those guys but with the marathon so close and the fact that my body was no where near good 5k shape, I knew I should pass on a fast 5k.
After my last race, I took it somewhat easy for a few days and had an awesome marathon workout. I ran a 10k at 6:21 pace, took a minute rest, and ran another 10k at 5:28 pace. I came back later that afternoon, and ran the same session again, this time hitting 6:20 and 5:23 pace. I felt pretty strong, got in 26.3 miles for the day and got a lot of confidence in the process. I ran the first run on an empty stomach and didn't take in any carbohydrates that day until both runs were completed. The workout was designed to get in some running in in a carbohydrate depleted state and since it was so tough, I took it very easy the two days before and after the run.
Anyway, I got down to the race and saw my friend John Woodman, so we warmed up together. When the gun went off, I took my time finding my pace and was trying to see if anyone wanted to take over. Jacob Carrigan was also there, and he was just behind me, so I settled into my goal pace of around 5:10 per mile.
The first mile was pretty much completely flat and I hit 5:00 for that mile. I had a feeling the mile was really closer to a 5:10, but I continued on and tried to keep my rhythm. The second mile was also pretty flat but had a long section that included a headwind most of the way. I tried to push through the wind and hit 5:10 for that mile, which I believe was pretty accurate. The last mile was flat as well, I hit the 3rd mile with a 5:05 split and finished the race in 15:41, winning by a little over 1:30.
The time was faster than I wanted but I think the course was a little short. My friend Travis had 3.07 miles on his GPS and Jacob's GPS said 3.10 miles. Travis told me GPS watches usually measure a legit 5k course between 3.15-3.17 miles, so my "real" time was just under 16:00, which is about what I wanted.
I also won free entry into their October race in a door prize drawing, which I will probably now run. The race definitely had a small-town feel to it but it was very run well, had a nice course and I think I'll run it again next year. I was also happy to get in a good workout without overdoing it.
After my last race, I took it somewhat easy for a few days and had an awesome marathon workout. I ran a 10k at 6:21 pace, took a minute rest, and ran another 10k at 5:28 pace. I came back later that afternoon, and ran the same session again, this time hitting 6:20 and 5:23 pace. I felt pretty strong, got in 26.3 miles for the day and got a lot of confidence in the process. I ran the first run on an empty stomach and didn't take in any carbohydrates that day until both runs were completed. The workout was designed to get in some running in in a carbohydrate depleted state and since it was so tough, I took it very easy the two days before and after the run.
Anyway, I got down to the race and saw my friend John Woodman, so we warmed up together. When the gun went off, I took my time finding my pace and was trying to see if anyone wanted to take over. Jacob Carrigan was also there, and he was just behind me, so I settled into my goal pace of around 5:10 per mile.
The first mile was pretty much completely flat and I hit 5:00 for that mile. I had a feeling the mile was really closer to a 5:10, but I continued on and tried to keep my rhythm. The second mile was also pretty flat but had a long section that included a headwind most of the way. I tried to push through the wind and hit 5:10 for that mile, which I believe was pretty accurate. The last mile was flat as well, I hit the 3rd mile with a 5:05 split and finished the race in 15:41, winning by a little over 1:30.
The time was faster than I wanted but I think the course was a little short. My friend Travis had 3.07 miles on his GPS and Jacob's GPS said 3.10 miles. Travis told me GPS watches usually measure a legit 5k course between 3.15-3.17 miles, so my "real" time was just under 16:00, which is about what I wanted.
I also won free entry into their October race in a door prize drawing, which I will probably now run. The race definitely had a small-town feel to it but it was very run well, had a nice course and I think I'll run it again next year. I was also happy to get in a good workout without overdoing it.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Runnin' to Beat the Blues
I didn't know much about this race, except it takes place entirely in Centennial Park. That meant it would be almost completely flat, most likely with a ton of turns. Right after Tom King, my training took a pretty big nose dive and I was having trouble running anything much faster than 5:40 pace. I thought that my iron could be getting low again, so I doubled on my dosage for a while and was hoping for a good time to get my head on a little more straight.
I wasn't sure who would show up but my goal was to take out the race in around 4:50 for the first mile and see if I could run under 15:20. When I checked the weather that morning, it showed that some strong rain and wind was coming in, along with some chilly temperatures. I felt really good on my warm-up and was feeling optimistic about my chances.
When the gun went off, I took a couple of hundred meters to find my rhythm. I felt like I was moving pretty quickly and was alone out front. I felt like I was going to make a run at a sub 4:50 first mile and I was surprised when I hit 4:54. It felt much faster than my 4:57 at Tom King, so I was a little frustrated. I tried to grit down and push some more and felt like I was still around 5:00 pace.
There was a confusing part in the second mile and one of the monitors let me know I missed a turn. I got back on course but lost around 20 seconds or so with the confusion and having to run back on course. At this time, I knew my shot at a decent time was out the window, so I decided to just run a steady effort and not kill myself. I hit two miles in 10:22, which gave me a 5:28 second mile and I kept a solid effort to finish in 16:08 to win by a little over a minute.
I was happy to win the course but was hoping to run a faster time to give me some more confidence, especially since the Country Music Marathon is about a month away. Oh well, back to the grind.
I wasn't sure who would show up but my goal was to take out the race in around 4:50 for the first mile and see if I could run under 15:20. When I checked the weather that morning, it showed that some strong rain and wind was coming in, along with some chilly temperatures. I felt really good on my warm-up and was feeling optimistic about my chances.
When the gun went off, I took a couple of hundred meters to find my rhythm. I felt like I was moving pretty quickly and was alone out front. I felt like I was going to make a run at a sub 4:50 first mile and I was surprised when I hit 4:54. It felt much faster than my 4:57 at Tom King, so I was a little frustrated. I tried to grit down and push some more and felt like I was still around 5:00 pace.
There was a confusing part in the second mile and one of the monitors let me know I missed a turn. I got back on course but lost around 20 seconds or so with the confusion and having to run back on course. At this time, I knew my shot at a decent time was out the window, so I decided to just run a steady effort and not kill myself. I hit two miles in 10:22, which gave me a 5:28 second mile and I kept a solid effort to finish in 16:08 to win by a little over a minute.
I was happy to win the course but was hoping to run a faster time to give me some more confidence, especially since the Country Music Marathon is about a month away. Oh well, back to the grind.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Tom King Half Marathon
This was a really important race for me because besides the Country Music Marathon, this was the race I was most focused on. It was at the end of my speed phase and I was hoping to run an excellent time. Even though I've been racing a lot, I've had a chance to get in some good mileage and some long runs. I even had a great workout on Wednesday where I ran an eight mile progression run, with my last two miles being run at 5:10 pace and feeling completely relaxed. There's no way I could have done that last fall/winter, so I was really looking forward to what I could run. My "A" goal was to get under 69:00, with my "B" goal being under 70:00. The top three runners also got some money, as well as the top three Nashville Strider runners, so I had that on my mind as well.
My only hesitation before the race was that I haven't had very many half-marathon specific workouts. My longest tempo run has been four miles or so and I haven't had time to do the half marathon bread-and-butter workouts such as 3x5k, 6-7 mile tempos, fast finish long runs, etc. But despite that, I was feeling really confident and told Mary the day before the race that this was the most confident I've been before a race since I started running again.
My only hesitation before the race was that I haven't had very many half-marathon specific workouts. My longest tempo run has been four miles or so and I haven't had time to do the half marathon bread-and-butter workouts such as 3x5k, 6-7 mile tempos, fast finish long runs, etc. But despite that, I was feeling really confident and told Mary the day before the race that this was the most confident I've been before a race since I started running again.
I've never run the Tom King course but I've heard it has the potential to be a really fast course. Other than a mini loop in Shelby Bottoms, it's primarily much out-and-back without any real hills. Since I'm a rhythm guy, it really seemed like it would be a great course for me to run fast on. There was a guy named Stewart Ellington who runs it every year and is pretty legit, so my pre-race plan was to stick with him for a bit and then press the gas down around 8-10 miles in.
I felt really loose on the warm-up and was ready to roll. When the gun went off, I started out in second place behind some tall guy with compression socks, who at the time I thought was an overly excited triathlete or something. About a minute or two into the race, I could tell I was running too fast, so I backed off and let the guys behind me catch me before tucking in behind them. Ronald Kirui, a Kenyan who I expected to win, went by me, as well as Nate Pennington, who I knew was a good runner, but I didn't know it was him at the time. I hit the first mile in 4:58, which was way faster than I wanted. However, it was still early in the race, so I had time to adjust and backed off the intensity some.
With the reduction in pace, I was falling further behind the top three. I hit the second mile in 5:09 and was about 7-8 seconds behind with no one directly behind me. I was hoping to average around 5:15 a mile, so I tried to focus on the pace so I didn't slow down too much more. In the next mile, Nate Pennington's shoe came untied, so he stopped to tie it. While frustrating for him, this enabled me to catch up and pass him, moving into third place. Having someone to chase down and now worry about helped me regain focus and I hit three miles in 15:17, giving me a 5:10 third mile, and still way under my goal pace. By the fourth mile, I was on the Shelby Bottoms Greenway and was trying to stay ahead of Nate and slowed down to a 5:17.
In the fifth mile, I started to hurt more than I should be at that point and I still had over nine miles of racing left. In my fall half-marathon, I felt really good for 7-8 miles but tiredness was already starting to creep in. I slowed down to a 5:17 for that mile, getting passed by Nate in the process. I tried to rally back a little bit before falling behind again. I split 5:20 for that mile, which was my slowest of the day and worried me some because the pain was getting worse every mile.
At around 6.5 miles in, there is a 180 degree turnaround point before running back down the way you can for a few miles. I figured this would be a good place to pick-up my pace so the people behind me would see that I was far ahead and hopefully lose a little motivation. I passed Nate again and scoped out the people behind me. It looked like Stewart Ellington was a good 30 or more seconds behind me, with one of my running buddies, Chris Herren just behind. I figured I had at least fourth place almost locked up and got focused on trying to beat Nate and finish third.
I guess the surge before the turnaround was too big of a move because things started to get more ugly by the minute. I split the 7th mile in 5:22 and tried to kept the gas pressed down as much as I could, hoping to stay in front of Nate. When I saw the 8 mile marker, I knew the wheels were about to come off because with how I felt at this point, 5.1 miles of racing would feel like an eternity. I slowed down even more, to a 5:26 and my lead over Nate was rapidly diminishing.
The slow death march started to pick up its steam (is that possible) and Nate flew by me in the next mile and I split 5:34. I was starting to get really frustrated because I was bleeding time and no matter how hard I tried, things just got tougher and tougher. Shortly before the 10 mile mark, Stewart went by me and I went on to run a 5:33 and split 53:06. I knew sub 69:00 was out the window but thought I still could hang on for a sub 70 if I could keep my focus.
We were out of the park now and it was a straight shot back to LP Field. Immediately, I noticed the really strong headwind and to make matters worse, I had no one to draft off of. I was falling further and further behind Nate and Stewart and at this point, I knew my shot at a top three finish was out, so my goal was to not get passed by Chris so I could finish as the first Nashville Strider.
For some reason, my watch didn't save the next mile splits but maybe it was a good thing, because things got ugly. Dying in a half marathon is bad enough, but dying while trying to fight a headwind is way worse. I tried to grit down and push the best that I could but it was really tough. With a mile to go, I turned around and saw I still had a good lead on Chris, but since I was rapidly slowing down, I thought he might be able to catch me. I tried to press down on the gas for one more move but after a minute, I had to back off because I was so dead.
At this point in the race, I just wanted to be done. My shot at a good time was out the window and I was really hurting. Luckily, I was able to hold off Chris and when I got to the stadium, I just wanted to be done and stopped trying to kill myself. One cool thing about the race is that you finish on the football field and can see yourself finishing on the Jumbotron. Today, I was on the Jumbotron for quite a while. I crossed the finish line in 71:10, which meant I covered my last 5k in 18:06, even though my first 5k was under 15:50.
Ronald Kirui won in 69:10, Jay Stephenson (who I thought was the triathlete but is actually a really legit runner) was 2nd place in 69:24, Stewart was third in 69:59 and Nate was fourth in 70:40.
After the race, I tried to cool-down with Chris but after a couple of minutes, I had to stop and walk. The last thing I will do when I am supposed to be running is walk. I will jog a 20 minute mile before I let myself walk a 10 minute one. Running slowly probably means I'm dying, walking means I've given up.
In looking at prior results of the guys ahead of me, I figured the wind added about a minute, which would give me a PR but a time that was still a good bit slower than my "B" goal.
It sounds kind of crappy, but I hope I wake up sick or something tomorrow, so I have some justification for this crappy performance. I feel like I am a ton stronger than I was in the fall but as mentioned before a slight worry before this race was my lack of long tempo runs and half marathon specific workouts. I've got in my mileage and long runs, with some good sessions at 5k-10k pace, but specific-endurance and race pace stuff is the best prep for the distance you're racing.
At least this bad race will force me to clean up my diet and sleep more. When things are going well, you easily become blind to the things you need to work on.
Despite sounding like a crabby old man in this post, I was still impressed with how well the race was run off by the race directors. The post race food was really good and things were really organized and efficient before, during and after the race. Next year I will come for redemption.
I felt really loose on the warm-up and was ready to roll. When the gun went off, I started out in second place behind some tall guy with compression socks, who at the time I thought was an overly excited triathlete or something. About a minute or two into the race, I could tell I was running too fast, so I backed off and let the guys behind me catch me before tucking in behind them. Ronald Kirui, a Kenyan who I expected to win, went by me, as well as Nate Pennington, who I knew was a good runner, but I didn't know it was him at the time. I hit the first mile in 4:58, which was way faster than I wanted. However, it was still early in the race, so I had time to adjust and backed off the intensity some.
With the reduction in pace, I was falling further behind the top three. I hit the second mile in 5:09 and was about 7-8 seconds behind with no one directly behind me. I was hoping to average around 5:15 a mile, so I tried to focus on the pace so I didn't slow down too much more. In the next mile, Nate Pennington's shoe came untied, so he stopped to tie it. While frustrating for him, this enabled me to catch up and pass him, moving into third place. Having someone to chase down and now worry about helped me regain focus and I hit three miles in 15:17, giving me a 5:10 third mile, and still way under my goal pace. By the fourth mile, I was on the Shelby Bottoms Greenway and was trying to stay ahead of Nate and slowed down to a 5:17.
In the fifth mile, I started to hurt more than I should be at that point and I still had over nine miles of racing left. In my fall half-marathon, I felt really good for 7-8 miles but tiredness was already starting to creep in. I slowed down to a 5:17 for that mile, getting passed by Nate in the process. I tried to rally back a little bit before falling behind again. I split 5:20 for that mile, which was my slowest of the day and worried me some because the pain was getting worse every mile.
At around 6.5 miles in, there is a 180 degree turnaround point before running back down the way you can for a few miles. I figured this would be a good place to pick-up my pace so the people behind me would see that I was far ahead and hopefully lose a little motivation. I passed Nate again and scoped out the people behind me. It looked like Stewart Ellington was a good 30 or more seconds behind me, with one of my running buddies, Chris Herren just behind. I figured I had at least fourth place almost locked up and got focused on trying to beat Nate and finish third.
I guess the surge before the turnaround was too big of a move because things started to get more ugly by the minute. I split the 7th mile in 5:22 and tried to kept the gas pressed down as much as I could, hoping to stay in front of Nate. When I saw the 8 mile marker, I knew the wheels were about to come off because with how I felt at this point, 5.1 miles of racing would feel like an eternity. I slowed down even more, to a 5:26 and my lead over Nate was rapidly diminishing.
The slow death march started to pick up its steam (is that possible) and Nate flew by me in the next mile and I split 5:34. I was starting to get really frustrated because I was bleeding time and no matter how hard I tried, things just got tougher and tougher. Shortly before the 10 mile mark, Stewart went by me and I went on to run a 5:33 and split 53:06. I knew sub 69:00 was out the window but thought I still could hang on for a sub 70 if I could keep my focus.
We were out of the park now and it was a straight shot back to LP Field. Immediately, I noticed the really strong headwind and to make matters worse, I had no one to draft off of. I was falling further and further behind Nate and Stewart and at this point, I knew my shot at a top three finish was out, so my goal was to not get passed by Chris so I could finish as the first Nashville Strider.
For some reason, my watch didn't save the next mile splits but maybe it was a good thing, because things got ugly. Dying in a half marathon is bad enough, but dying while trying to fight a headwind is way worse. I tried to grit down and push the best that I could but it was really tough. With a mile to go, I turned around and saw I still had a good lead on Chris, but since I was rapidly slowing down, I thought he might be able to catch me. I tried to press down on the gas for one more move but after a minute, I had to back off because I was so dead.
At this point in the race, I just wanted to be done. My shot at a good time was out the window and I was really hurting. Luckily, I was able to hold off Chris and when I got to the stadium, I just wanted to be done and stopped trying to kill myself. One cool thing about the race is that you finish on the football field and can see yourself finishing on the Jumbotron. Today, I was on the Jumbotron for quite a while. I crossed the finish line in 71:10, which meant I covered my last 5k in 18:06, even though my first 5k was under 15:50.
Ronald Kirui won in 69:10, Jay Stephenson (who I thought was the triathlete but is actually a really legit runner) was 2nd place in 69:24, Stewart was third in 69:59 and Nate was fourth in 70:40.
After the race, I tried to cool-down with Chris but after a couple of minutes, I had to stop and walk. The last thing I will do when I am supposed to be running is walk. I will jog a 20 minute mile before I let myself walk a 10 minute one. Running slowly probably means I'm dying, walking means I've given up.
In looking at prior results of the guys ahead of me, I figured the wind added about a minute, which would give me a PR but a time that was still a good bit slower than my "B" goal.
It sounds kind of crappy, but I hope I wake up sick or something tomorrow, so I have some justification for this crappy performance. I feel like I am a ton stronger than I was in the fall but as mentioned before a slight worry before this race was my lack of long tempo runs and half marathon specific workouts. I've got in my mileage and long runs, with some good sessions at 5k-10k pace, but specific-endurance and race pace stuff is the best prep for the distance you're racing.
At least this bad race will force me to clean up my diet and sleep more. When things are going well, you easily become blind to the things you need to work on.
Despite sounding like a crabby old man in this post, I was still impressed with how well the race was run off by the race directors. The post race food was really good and things were really organized and efficient before, during and after the race. Next year I will come for redemption.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Race Judicata 10k
After a couple 5ks, it's time to move up to the 10k. In college, the 5k was the longest I'd like to go. Anything longer than that and I would zone out and not put in the effort I needed to. I guess I've lost my speed and mojo in my age because I really like 10ks. The pace isn't as aggressive as the 5k (10-15s per mile slower), which enables you to slightly relax and with all of my marathon training, 5ks feel way too fast.
The Fangtastic 5k was two weeks ago, so was hoping I'd gain some extra fitness from that race and I also got in my first 100+ mile week of the season last week (102.1 miles). Looking at the elevation map of the race shows how insanely hilly it is. A large portion takes place on the roads of the famed 11.2 in Percy Warner Park. Percy Warner is famous for its obnoxious hills and there were at least two of them on this course. I wasn't sure what the competition would be like but my friend and sometimes training partner, Chris Herren said he was running. Chris runs on the course a good bit and is a billy goat on the hills. I thought I would be a little more race fit than him but the amount of elevation changes favored him.
My main goal was to just give a really hard, intense effort and really make myself hurt. I was using this primarily as a tune-up for the Tom King half marathon, which takes place in a couple of weeks. Chris wanted to relax the first two miles before getting in his groove. I thought this strategy really suited me because there is a killer hill in the second mile before having some downhill and flat sections for the next couple of miles. My plan was to try and drop Chris during this part before the hills come again because I'm a really terrible uphill runner.
I did my usual 15 minute warm-up (5:00 very easy, 5:00 normal, 5:00 medium) combined with some drills and several strides. I was feeling loose and ready to go but when I got to the line, there was no sign of Chris. It turned out he was out-of-town, so I would most likely be out front by myself. I had no idea of a time goal but Alex Moore told me that no one has ever broken 33:00 on the course. I then made that my goal and was ready to go.
When the gun went off, I took my time finding my rhythm. I ran with the pack for the first 1/4 mile or so and then slowly left them. The first mile is primarily downhill and loses about 50 feet of elevation. I hit that marker in a relaxed 4:53 and was dreading what the second mile had in store. From about 1.25 miles until 1.75 miles, the course climbs nearly 200 ft, which is an insane amount and rivals the worst hill in my parts, High Cliff Dr. Luckily, I went out relaxed enough that my legs were still somewhat fresh, so while the hill put some major brakes on me, it didn't completely wipe out my legs. I passed the mile marker with a 5:49 split, which was a huge slowdown but I was just glad it was under 6:00. The only thing I could think about while climbing the hill was that you have to be insane to run the Flying Monkey Marathon out here.
The third mile was the most downhill of the race. It lost about 150 feet, which is a significant amount. I thought I would be able to fly this mile but I was still feeling the effects of the second mile. However, I was able to split 4:58. With a 15:40 three mile split, I was significantly under 33:00 pace but that included two downhill miles.
The fourth mile had you climbing for the first half before letting you have a downhill second half. I knew there was an 180 degree turn somewhere on the course but I couldn't remember where. It felt like I was on the course for a long time and since I'm terrible with directions and have gotten lost in a lot of races, I was worried that I took a wrong turn somewhere. I was debating turning around and backtracking but I saw my friend David Hudson running with his Brentwood Academy kids on a training run and since he didn't say anything about me going the wrong way, I thought I was good to go.
Eventually, I saw the turnaround sign and all was well. After turning around, I saw that I had a really big lead and I saw that Alex was in position for a second place finish (he also ran the 5k, shortly before the 10k). I ended up with a 5:16 split, which still meant I was well under 33:00 pace, with just two miles to go.
My pre-race plan was to really hammer the last two miles and I tried to push but the changes of rhythm and being out in front alone really made that difficult. The fifth mile had a lot of short, steep climbs and drops with some flat segments thrown in for good measure. I don't deal with changes in rhythm very well, so whenever I had a flat section, I'd really try to open up and run hard. I really found my groove this mile and split 5:07.
The last mile was the second most difficult of the race. It had several short climbs but what made it really bad was that my legs were almost dead at this point, so the "short" climbs felt like mountains. I knew I had sub 33:00 locked down but I still wanted to run really hard. At the beginning of this mile was the famed "golf-course hill." It wasn't particularly long but like I mentioned, my legs were almost trashed. On the hill, I was absolutely crawling. I had to be running well over 7:00 pace up it and after this hill was done, I had a couple more short climbs.
Luckily the last half mile included a nice little downhill and was flat until the finish line. I tried to push again, without going overboard and ended up splitting 5:30 that mile and ran my last .2 miles at sub 5:00 pace (59) to finish in 32:32, to get the course record. I was really pleased because while the time didn't appear very fast, this course is easily 45s-1:00 slower than a flatter course. And after the race was over, I recovered really quickly. I'm feeling confident for Tom King in two weeks and think I can average the pace I did here, for the next seven miles on the much flatter race course.
The Fangtastic 5k was two weeks ago, so was hoping I'd gain some extra fitness from that race and I also got in my first 100+ mile week of the season last week (102.1 miles). Looking at the elevation map of the race shows how insanely hilly it is. A large portion takes place on the roads of the famed 11.2 in Percy Warner Park. Percy Warner is famous for its obnoxious hills and there were at least two of them on this course. I wasn't sure what the competition would be like but my friend and sometimes training partner, Chris Herren said he was running. Chris runs on the course a good bit and is a billy goat on the hills. I thought I would be a little more race fit than him but the amount of elevation changes favored him.
My main goal was to just give a really hard, intense effort and really make myself hurt. I was using this primarily as a tune-up for the Tom King half marathon, which takes place in a couple of weeks. Chris wanted to relax the first two miles before getting in his groove. I thought this strategy really suited me because there is a killer hill in the second mile before having some downhill and flat sections for the next couple of miles. My plan was to try and drop Chris during this part before the hills come again because I'm a really terrible uphill runner.
I did my usual 15 minute warm-up (5:00 very easy, 5:00 normal, 5:00 medium) combined with some drills and several strides. I was feeling loose and ready to go but when I got to the line, there was no sign of Chris. It turned out he was out-of-town, so I would most likely be out front by myself. I had no idea of a time goal but Alex Moore told me that no one has ever broken 33:00 on the course. I then made that my goal and was ready to go.
When the gun went off, I took my time finding my rhythm. I ran with the pack for the first 1/4 mile or so and then slowly left them. The first mile is primarily downhill and loses about 50 feet of elevation. I hit that marker in a relaxed 4:53 and was dreading what the second mile had in store. From about 1.25 miles until 1.75 miles, the course climbs nearly 200 ft, which is an insane amount and rivals the worst hill in my parts, High Cliff Dr. Luckily, I went out relaxed enough that my legs were still somewhat fresh, so while the hill put some major brakes on me, it didn't completely wipe out my legs. I passed the mile marker with a 5:49 split, which was a huge slowdown but I was just glad it was under 6:00. The only thing I could think about while climbing the hill was that you have to be insane to run the Flying Monkey Marathon out here.
The third mile was the most downhill of the race. It lost about 150 feet, which is a significant amount. I thought I would be able to fly this mile but I was still feeling the effects of the second mile. However, I was able to split 4:58. With a 15:40 three mile split, I was significantly under 33:00 pace but that included two downhill miles.
The fourth mile had you climbing for the first half before letting you have a downhill second half. I knew there was an 180 degree turn somewhere on the course but I couldn't remember where. It felt like I was on the course for a long time and since I'm terrible with directions and have gotten lost in a lot of races, I was worried that I took a wrong turn somewhere. I was debating turning around and backtracking but I saw my friend David Hudson running with his Brentwood Academy kids on a training run and since he didn't say anything about me going the wrong way, I thought I was good to go.
Eventually, I saw the turnaround sign and all was well. After turning around, I saw that I had a really big lead and I saw that Alex was in position for a second place finish (he also ran the 5k, shortly before the 10k). I ended up with a 5:16 split, which still meant I was well under 33:00 pace, with just two miles to go.
My pre-race plan was to really hammer the last two miles and I tried to push but the changes of rhythm and being out in front alone really made that difficult. The fifth mile had a lot of short, steep climbs and drops with some flat segments thrown in for good measure. I don't deal with changes in rhythm very well, so whenever I had a flat section, I'd really try to open up and run hard. I really found my groove this mile and split 5:07.
The last mile was the second most difficult of the race. It had several short climbs but what made it really bad was that my legs were almost dead at this point, so the "short" climbs felt like mountains. I knew I had sub 33:00 locked down but I still wanted to run really hard. At the beginning of this mile was the famed "golf-course hill." It wasn't particularly long but like I mentioned, my legs were almost trashed. On the hill, I was absolutely crawling. I had to be running well over 7:00 pace up it and after this hill was done, I had a couple more short climbs.
Luckily the last half mile included a nice little downhill and was flat until the finish line. I tried to push again, without going overboard and ended up splitting 5:30 that mile and ran my last .2 miles at sub 5:00 pace (59) to finish in 32:32, to get the course record. I was really pleased because while the time didn't appear very fast, this course is easily 45s-1:00 slower than a flatter course. And after the race was over, I recovered really quickly. I'm feeling confident for Tom King in two weeks and think I can average the pace I did here, for the next seven miles on the much flatter race course.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Predators Fangtasic 5k
This is the race that I was both looking forward to and am nervous about. I knew Ryan Snellen was running and he's a really tough competitor. While he's been busy with work for a while, he ran 13:57 in 2009 and he wins nearly every race he competes in around here, so I knew the task was going to be tough. I've had a couple workouts with some faster running in them but am still in pretty rusty 5k shape. A couple of weeks ago, I actually ran a workout with Snellen and Alex Moore and felt really good but Snellen hurt me pretty badly on our last interval. I knew this course was pretty hilly, which is a weakness of mine. But after looking at race results, I saw Snellen usually runs to win, so he probably hasn't dug very deeply into the well the last year or two, so my plan was to really make him hurt in the second mile and then try and leave him with a mile to go.
The weather was almost perfect temperature wise for the race. When the gun went off, Snellen and I ran side-by-side and it seemed like both of us were waiting to see what the other wanted to do. The first mile had some climbs and some strong headwinds in some parts and we passed the first marker in 5:07. I knew that was too slow, so I tried to push on the gas some. The second mile was a little more rolling with a couple bigger hills that I tried to push hard on. At one point, I had a very tiny gap on Snellen. I started thinking that Snellen was about to crack but as soon as I did, he was right back beside me. We hit the two mile in 10:13, which gave us a 5:06 second mile.
With such a slow pace, I knew I was in trouble. My only shot to win was to immediately ramp up the intensity, so I made a hard move and wasn't planning on letting up. Snellen was game and was still at my side. The last mile is by far the fastest mile of the course and has a long gradual downhill, along with some flat sections. I wasn't having any luck cracking him and with under a half mile to go, he put a gap on me. That was more of a mental blow because I knew he would be very hard to outkick, especially with all of my marathon training in my legs now. I hit the three mile marker about two seconds behind him in 14:51 and tried to push again. I gained about a second on him but couldn't catch him and he beat me 15:19 to 15:20.
Running a 4:38 last mile was really motivating but I was frustrated with how I ran. While in college, I was dead after a 5k, I recovered very quickly after this one. Marathon training and racing is all about staying relaxed and patient and I carried too much of that to the race today. 5ks are fast and intense and I forgot how that is really supposed to feel. It's never a good thing to try out for a rock band when you've been playing in a jazz group for the past several months. After reflecting on the race, I realize I ran the first two miles around 10k effort and had way too much left that last mile. I don't know if I would have won because Snellen looked really strong but I should have run under 15:10 today. But on a positive note, 15:20 on this course is a really fast time and gives me confidence in what I can accomplish this spring and I'm sure Snellen and I will wage battle again.
The weather was almost perfect temperature wise for the race. When the gun went off, Snellen and I ran side-by-side and it seemed like both of us were waiting to see what the other wanted to do. The first mile had some climbs and some strong headwinds in some parts and we passed the first marker in 5:07. I knew that was too slow, so I tried to push on the gas some. The second mile was a little more rolling with a couple bigger hills that I tried to push hard on. At one point, I had a very tiny gap on Snellen. I started thinking that Snellen was about to crack but as soon as I did, he was right back beside me. We hit the two mile in 10:13, which gave us a 5:06 second mile.
With such a slow pace, I knew I was in trouble. My only shot to win was to immediately ramp up the intensity, so I made a hard move and wasn't planning on letting up. Snellen was game and was still at my side. The last mile is by far the fastest mile of the course and has a long gradual downhill, along with some flat sections. I wasn't having any luck cracking him and with under a half mile to go, he put a gap on me. That was more of a mental blow because I knew he would be very hard to outkick, especially with all of my marathon training in my legs now. I hit the three mile marker about two seconds behind him in 14:51 and tried to push again. I gained about a second on him but couldn't catch him and he beat me 15:19 to 15:20.
Running a 4:38 last mile was really motivating but I was frustrated with how I ran. While in college, I was dead after a 5k, I recovered very quickly after this one. Marathon training and racing is all about staying relaxed and patient and I carried too much of that to the race today. 5ks are fast and intense and I forgot how that is really supposed to feel. It's never a good thing to try out for a rock band when you've been playing in a jazz group for the past several months. After reflecting on the race, I realize I ran the first two miles around 10k effort and had way too much left that last mile. I don't know if I would have won because Snellen looked really strong but I should have run under 15:10 today. But on a positive note, 15:20 on this course is a really fast time and gives me confidence in what I can accomplish this spring and I'm sure Snellen and I will wage battle again.
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