Training continues to go well, preparing for the Publix Atlanta Half Marathon in 6 weeks! Coach Carl recommended for this race that I could race hard or take it easy. Of course I wasn't going to jog this one if I was cleared to use this race as a time trial.
To avoid any chance of "bonking," I had a hearty breakfast at home, and brought two bananas to eat before beginning my 2-mile warm-up, on the Michelle Obama trail adjacent to the race site. After my legs were warmed up, I began running strides, 30 second bursts at about 7 min / mile pace, followed by slowing to an easier pace for a minute, and then repeating. I noticed that something didn't feel right in my left foot with the first stride, but after a mile or so, I realized that there was something wrong with my sock. In fact I started to worry that I had a hole in my sock! I cut the warmup short to check out the situation: no hole, apparently the sock wasn't fitting quite right, but after adjusting the socks on both feet, I was good to go. With the late start to my warmup and the unexpected break, I only ran about 1.6 miles before the race, but I was ready to run my best race. The temperature was about 40 deg F, and the skies were clear; wearing two layers, a cap and mittens, it was a perfect day for a great race!
 |
| I ran in Tucker Running Club yellow this morning, and we had a great turnout, at least 20 for the photo-op. I didn't take any photos of my own, as I deliberately hid my phone in my car to avoid carrying any extra weight during the race! |
I lined up near the front of wave B, starting 2 minutes after the first wave. I didn't intend to toe the line but there was a big space where no one else wanted to start up front, and so with 5 seconds before the start, I stepped up to the line, to begin next to a father-son pair. The airhorn sounded and I began running. My goal was to run between 7:30 - 7:45 min / mile at the start and see how I felt. The father behind me said to his son "Don't go out too fast, we won't be able to maintain it" and I took that advice for myself as well. Several runners who had started behind me darted out in front, among them Willie Bower, one of the speedsters in Tucker Running Club. (I thought, why didn't they start at the front of the wave?) From the beginning, my legs felt very good. The warm-up regime had been perfect. I checked my watch a few times in the first mile, but I was consistently running about 7:30 min / mile pace, with a fairly comfortable effort. As I approached the mile 1 marker, was it Willie Bower that I passed on my right?! Whatever was going on with him, I had found exactly the right pace to begin the race.
 |
| Sizing up the competition before the start? (Photo by Atlanta Track Club) |
In contrast to past years, I didn't see the leaders in the return group until I was about 1.3 miles into the race, which was 1.8 miles for them on the out-and-back course. I was moving well through mile 2, occasionally passing people, and only rarely passed by others. I was following a man in a yellow shirt who was just behind another man in a short-sleeved blue Atlanta Track Club shirt, and aimed not to let the gap grow between me and those two men. Even though the route went slightly uphill to the school, I maintained speed and the gap with my "pacers", without working too hard. At the halfway point, I made a wide turn and passed a couple of people at that stage. Now the fun part of the race began, seeing a lot of people that I knew (that were behind me!) and they were cheering me on. By focusing on the "pacers" ahead of me, I maintained a strong pace. I had hydrated carefully before the race, so I could afford to zip past the water station. The route felt like we were on a slight downhill, so I used that to mentally encourage myself to keep pushing. I wasn't gaining on the "pacers", but I wasn't slowing down either. I passed the mile 2 sign with the clock reading just past 17 minutes, knocking out another 7:30 minute mile!
Now I was beginning to tire, but I was not exhausted - and the knowledge that I was very close to a personal-best pace, with only 1.11 mile to run, that kept me moving forward. My inner Eliud Kipchoge emerged, as I forced myself to smile between breaths every fourth step:
and so on and so forth. I continued to pass runners who had probably begun with wave A,
Then about 2.6 miles in, I began to climb the one hill on the race route. By Atlanta standards, it's not such a big hill, only about 40 feet high. It's really just a big speed bump, but still it's always a challenge for me near the end of this race. The "pacer" wearing the yellow shirt moved ahead of the one with the blue shirt, who maintained a healthy gap in front of me. Several runners now passed me going up hill.
smile-smile-smile-breathe-smile-smile-smile-breathe,
and so on and so forth. I continued to pass runners who had probably begun with wave A,
smile-smile-smile-breathe-smile-smile-smile-breathe.
Then about 2.6 miles in, I began to climb the one hill on the race route. By Atlanta standards, it's not such a big hill, only about 40 feet high. It's really just a big speed bump, but still it's always a challenge for me near the end of this race. The "pacer" wearing the yellow shirt moved ahead of the one with the blue shirt, who maintained a healthy gap in front of me. Several runners now passed me going up hill.
Now for my second trick, from Rogue Running: my strongest mantra, "I'm a f------ badass, I'm a f------ badass" etc. etc. and that drove me to the crest of the hill. Making a right turn toward the finish, I knew that I had only 1/3 mile to go, and now we were moving downhill. Did I have anything left in the energy tank? YES!! I sped up.
Without thinking consciously at first, I deployed my last trick, one that I learned from Jeff Galloway: the giant invisible rubber band came out of my non-existent back pocket, lassoed over a runner 20 feet ahead of me, and I flew past her as if propelled by a slingshot! And then I lassoed a second runner, flew past him as well, with my momentum continuing to push me between two more runners. When I checked my Garmin data after the race, I had reached 10 mph speed for a moment. But then two runners behind me must have used the same trick on me, as they raced past me on the right. Looking at my Garmin data afterwards, I had slowed back to an 8 mph speed.
Without thinking consciously at first, I deployed my last trick, one that I learned from Jeff Galloway: the giant invisible rubber band came out of my non-existent back pocket, lassoed over a runner 20 feet ahead of me, and I flew past her as if propelled by a slingshot! And then I lassoed a second runner, flew past him as well, with my momentum continuing to push me between two more runners. When I checked my Garmin data after the race, I had reached 10 mph speed for a moment. But then two runners behind me must have used the same trick on me, as they raced past me on the right. Looking at my Garmin data afterwards, I had slowed back to an 8 mph speed.
Nearing the mile 3 marker, I saw 24:45 on the clock (my watch recorded 7:41 for mile 3). Somehow my brain could still do the arithmetic: subtracting 2 minutes for the wave B start, if I covered the last 0.11 mile in 45 seconds, I would match my personal best! I didn't know if I could quite manage to finish within 45 seconds, but I did find one last burst of speed as I turned into the parking lot, hearing the race announcer at the finish line remind us that the race is a Peachtree Road Race qualifier: I thought, don't slow down, DON'T SLOW DOWN, DON'T SLOW DOWN UNTIL YOU CROSS THE TIMING MAT at 25:35 gun time! That corresponded to an official finish of 23:35, my second-fastest 5K time, and just 5 seconds slower than my personal best!! Today's race was my best run in a full year! I'm so happy to have recovered, and am back to where I was at this time last year.
No comments:
Post a Comment