October 4, 2014: Cartersville 10K

Goal: to improve on my personal record of 55:29 in the 10K distance

The Atlanta Track Club sponsors the Cartersville 10K early each fall.  Cartersville is about an hour's drive north-northwest from Atlanta, and the race involves a couple of parks south of the town center.  About six months ago, Bonnie and I walked the middle part of the race route, and appreciated the relatively flat nature of the course and the relaxing rural scenery.  Several people in the Peachtree-In-Training course were planning to run this race, including coaches Curt and Kathie Walker.

In the past month, I've joined the gym at Emory.  In the fitness assessment provided to new members, I scored "poor" on flexibility!  I had heard that yoga was good for runners, so I began taking a yoga class on Thursday evenings.  I have a difficult time doing some of the poses (and the teacher is literally "rubberman" despite being in his mid-50's) but my muscles feel great after each session, due to the stretching.

I've also been increasing the length of my long runs in preparation for the 10-miler at the end of this month.  On Monday I enjoyed a slow but successful 9-mile run at Stone Mountain, and for the first time had confidence that I would indeed be able to complete the 10-miler.  With yoga on Thursday night, my legs felt really good this morning.  Moreover, the temperatures dropped overnight into true fall weather.  And today's race route, while not completely flat, would not have any terribly challenging hills.  The conditions were ripe for a new personal record!

I had studied the map for the race route carefully in the days leading up to the race.  In the Winship 5K last weekend, I was pleased with the outcome of my strategy of identifying landmarks to pass in 5-minute intervals.  I decided to try that again.  I identified landmarks and progress goals based on a pace of 9:00 minutes per mile for the first 45 minutes, which might leave me enough energy for a burst of speed in the final mile, aiming to finish at or just under 55 minutes.

On the drive to Cartersville, I turned off the radio for the last few minutes on the highway, to review in my mind the landmarks that I had identified.  Traffic was virtually non-existent until exit 283 from Interstate-75, when I joined a caravan of cars all heading to the race.  When I stepped out of the car shortly after 7 am, it was delightfully cool - 48 degrees!  I had brought the light running jacket but decided to try to run without it.  Wearing a cap and keeping in motion helped to keep me warm enough.  I had a feeling that I would be comfortable once I began running the race, so I stayed in the short-sleeve shirt that I had worn and regular running shorts.  I wore my trademark yellow cap, and brought sunglasses just in case.

As the sun rose, there was hardly a cloud in the sky, and it was truly going to be a perfectly beautiful day for running.  We gathered in waves, although for this race we would all start at the same time, so wave B would not be waiting 2 minutes for wave A to clear the starting line.  Most of the runners around me were not wearing sunglasses, nor did they have a water belt.  But I felt that I would need the sunglasses during the stretches that turned eastward, and after the discomfort of dry-mouth in the Atlanta's Finest 5K in late August, I resolved to bring my own water in all future races.  Shortly after 8:00 am I saw the runners in front move forward, and the race was on!  It took only about 15 seconds to get to the starting line.

Mile 1:  Now that I have some experience, my starting strategy is to hold back a little at the beginning.  Running with wave B was a good choice.  I quickly found a good rhythm and pace as we ran out of the park and onto Cummings Road.  My first goal was to pass Douthit Ferry Road before the 5-minute alert sounded, and I was pleased to reach the expected point, the entrance to Cartersville Middle School, as the alert sounded.  We continued running due west, and I could see the shadows of the runners behind me extending to the northwest, as the sun rose above the treeline.  I could feel a little warmth of sunlight on my back, but it wasn't uncomfortable.  I was pretty sure that I would appreciate my sunglasses later in the race.  We turned onto Walnut Grove Road, for the first noticeable rise in elevation.  Shortly before reaching the sharp left turn, we passed the mile 1 marker, where a volunteer called out the time as 8:45.  Subtracting 15 seconds for the start, that was a little faster than I had intended, but not too bad (after the race, I saw that my tracker had recorded 8:31).

Race route, with miles marked in magenta

Mile 2:  As we made the sharp left turn onto Cummings Road, the 10 minute alert sounded.  Right on schedule!  The road went downhill, but the pavement was old and so I took this section a bit slower than most others, despite the favorable slope.  At the south end of the triangle was a house and second building, perhaps a farm.  The word "bucolic" came to mind for the first but not the last time of the morning.  Leveling out as we made a left turn, we ran in an eastward direction for a few hundred feet, directly into the sun.  Thank goodness for the sunglasses!  I also pulled the brim of my hat down and to the right just a bit, to give more protection.  What a beautiful sky, with hardly a cloud to be seen!  We then turned right onto Milner Road.  Although I was passed by quite a few runners in this section, I was satisfied with my pace, and I felt that I was executing my overall strategy exactly as I had hoped. My plan was to get "well down Milner Road" before the 15 minute alert, and that was managed.  Then a school bus parking area came into view, and after we passed the buses it was time to turn into Sam Smith Park.  The drive went a few hundred feet, east toward the sun, and I knew from the earlier visit that we would turn onto the park's walking path at the entrance to the parking area.  The water stop was on the left as we entered the parking lot, but I passed the water stop and resolved to take a sip shortly after entering the park.  At the mile 2 marker, a volunteer was calling out seconds, but I wasn't sure what minute he was on.  Later I realized that he was at 17 minutes, and my tracker indicated 17:14 elapsed, 8:43 for the second mile.

Mile 3:  As we entered the park, a sign warned against removing any artifacts found on the site.  Two hundred years ago, this area was the heartland of the Cherokee Nation, and burial mounds have been preserved near the site of today's race.  We ran toward Milner Road and then turned due south, paralleling the road and climbing a small hill, which appeared to be a levee, protecting the land from flood stages of the Etowah River.  The 20 minute alert sounded as I reached the top of the levee.  The plan was to be "well down the path" at this stage.  I wasn't sure if I was as far along as I wanted to be, but just focused on keeping a steady pace.  As we reached the end of the park, I was aware of freshly mowed grass on either side of the path, but looking to the left I could see a large dark green leafy crop.  It didn't take long for the path to take a diagonal left, indicating that we were approaching the Etowah River.  I tried to look over the field to see if I could make out any of the lead runners, but it seemed that the path was empty, so perhaps the leaders had not yet made it that far?  Then I thought I saw a lone figure running northward.  Back in the main pack, we were nicely spread out along the path, able to run easily without impeding each other, but also never alone.  I would occasionally pass someone taking a walk break, and was occasionally passed, but for the most part we were all moving at a similar pace.  Thomas from the Brookhaven Peachtree-In-Training group caught up with me and we ran together for a couple of minutes, although I didn't recognize him at the time, as I was so focused on my own running.  By the time the 25 minute alert had sounded, I was well along the river pathway, still on schedule.  I finished the third mile at 26:16 elapsed, 9:02 for the third mile.

Elevation map for this relatively flat course.  

Mile 4:  Shortly after passing the 3-mile marker, we reached a sign at 27:45 marking the 5K point.  Subtracting 15 seconds from the start, this meant that I was precisely on a 55-minute pace.  That was according to plan, but it also meant that I could not afford to slow down if I wanted to beat my PR.  We turned northward to begin the return trip.  The 30-minute alert sounded shortly before we reached the levee - I had hoped to reach the levee before hearing the alert.  The path up this levee took a switchback route to keep the slope gentle.  As this part of the levee appeared to be higher, I started to wonder if it was a natural embankment instead of a human-built levee, which I would have expected to be the same height.  (Afterwards when I checked the elevations, they were both nearly the same elevation, and the second levee crossing was 3 feet lower than the first!)  Quite a few runners slowed down here, and I was able to pass a few people by using the hill-running techniques that I've practiced in Atlanta.  I was beginning to recognize a few of the runners that had been around me for the entire race, from their backs: one black shirt honoring Georgia military, a white shirt for a race sponsored by an OB/GYN office, a woman with two small water bottles on her belt.  Mr. White Shirt remained ahead of me but I passed Mr. Black Shirt and Ms. Water Bottles.  Shortly after crossing the levee, we took a left turn onto a divided road into the park.  This was a new feature from last year, and meant that we would only make half a circuit of the track at the end, instead of two circuits.  Any annoyance at the unexpected "hook" was dispelled when I realized that I might see people that I knew running a couple of minutes ahead of me.  Indeed, here came Coach Kathie Walker, and I greeted her with "Way to go Kathie!"  As we approached the turnaround point, the volunteer was holding his arms out like a plane making a sharp 180 degree turn.  I mimicked his motion - I meant to just clown around, but in fact I felt like the motion helped me make the turn quite easily.  He called out "That's the way to do it!" as the 35 minute alert sounded, soon followed by passing the 4-mile marker, which was exactly as I had written out the plan on my notes: "35   approaching 4 mile mark"  35:25 elapsed, 9:09 for the fourth mile.  I took some satisfaction in knowing that I was slightly ahead of the mark achieved in the Decatur-DeKalb 4-Miler in July, while running at a comfortable pace.

Mile 5:  This stage was level or very gently downhill, as we made our way toward the parking lot, along a pleasant, gently winding path.  Because of the hook in mile 4, the next landmark was now moot: I was still on the path at the 40-minute alert but that was probably OK since the remaining landmarks would now be earlier than planned.  As we exited the path, we reached the water stop again.  I would have accepted Gatorade/Powerade if it was obviously in the cups, but the cups appeared to be only water, although the second volunteer was offering "Gin?" with a bit of dry humor.  On the straightaway out of the park, I took a couple of sips of water from my bottle.  Before long we were out of the park and had turned right onto Milner Road.  I began thinking of my finishing strategy.  I had hoped to pass the 5-mile mark before 45 minutes had elapsed, and then would try to speed up.  I made a toe-to-head assessment: feet, OK; ankles, a little twinge on the left but not bad, so OK; calves, excellent; knees, no problem; everything else below the head, excellent; attitude, fantastic!  The 5-mile mark was coming up, at the corner of Milner and Cummings Road.  A volunteer was calling out times, and I heard 44:45 as I passed.  Perfect!!  44:31 elapsed, 9:06 for the fifth mile.

Mile 6:  At the corner, a second volunteer called out "Just 1.2 miles to go!"  I shot forward between two runners immediately in front of me.  On the right, Red Shirt called out "Finish strong!"  Thanks, Mr. Red Shirt, for your sportsmanship and supportive words, even as I was passing you.  The running community is really great that way.  But I resolved that no one was going to pass me for the rest of the race.  Mr. White Shirt, Ms. Water Bottles, and Mr. Black Shirt were in front of me, in that order.  I sped up a bit more and after a few hundred feet caught up to and passed Mr. Black Shirt.  Although my intention was to run as fast as I could at this stage, I knew that I would be on schedule as long as I crossed Douthit Ferry Road before the 50-minute alert sounded.  We passed Cartersville Middle School - no alert!  We reached Douthit Ferry road, where the police were alternating runners and drivers through the intersection - no alert!  Coming through the intersection I passed Ms. Water Bottles.  But I sensed that she immediately sped up to keep up with me, and I could glimpse her just behind my left shoulder as we continued on Cummings Road.  The 50-minute alert sounded several hundred feet past Douthit Ferry Road, and knowing that I was on pace for a great finish, in addition to the competition around me, spurred me to keep running as fast as possible.  We turned into the park, with Ms. Water Bottles still just behind me.  A volunteer called out "It's the shoes!"  Now I was really excited to be entering the park.  The road was level and I managed to remain ahead of Ms. Water Bottles, while still trying to catch Mr. White Shirt in front.  As we cleared the parking lot, I could see the Finish banner for the Atlanta Track Club on the far side of the oval track.  Almost there!  A volunteer was giving instructions for the finish, standing near the position where I expected the six-mile marker to be: 53:04 elapsed, 8:33 for the sixth mile.

The finish:  A young woman was slowing down in front of me: I jetted past her onto the track.  The track was synthetic material and a fantastic running surface.  I sped up another gear as I cleared the curve.  Mr. White Shirt was about 25 feet ahead, followed by a second runner who I did not recall seeing earlier.  On the straightaway I started pumping my arms really hard and began to gain on them.    I managed a silly pose for the photographer about one hundred feet from the finish.  As we entered the final curve heading into the finish chute, I realized two things: 1) I was going to finish with the clock still reading 54 minutes; but 2) the finish chute was rather narrow and three of us probably couldn't cross together.  I could pass the second runner if I hurried, and with a tremendous effort, I did so, and even caught up to Mr. White Shirt with that move.  But then he lunged ahead and nosed across the line a split-second before I did.  Nonetheless, 54:49 on the clock, official tag time was 54:33, 8:47 minute per mile average pace.  PERSONAL RECORD for 10K!!

Approaching the finish, about 100 feet before the line.  I still had enough energy to pose for the camera, at 9 mph! 

Epilogue:  What a fun race!  I was gassed at the end, but had executed my strategy as well as I could have imagined, achieving all of my goals for this race.  Coaches Curt and Kathie had already finished but I was excited to tell them that I had broken my 55-minute barrier.  Kathie won her age group in 52:14, and Curt won second in 48:46.  I overheard quite a few runners saying that they set personal records this morning, and it was a great course and perfect conditions for doing so.

Lessons learned or confirmed:
1) I can comfortably run in a short-sleeved performance shirt and shorts when it's 48 degrees.
2) The sunglasses and hat were a great decision.
3) Although I probably did not need the water bottle today, it didn't slow me down.
4) The strategy of 5-minute alerts definitely worked.

My next race will be the Atlanta 10-miler, three weeks from tomorrow.  At this moment, my goal is simply to finish 10 miles in good shape, and so I will take it a bit slower than today's race, including short walk breaks at 5 minute intervals.  But today was a nice confidence builder going into the remaining fall races.

Link to Cartersville 10K