Last night at dinner after a Tucker Running Club group run, Judy Tennell mentioned that she was running a Leap Day 5K race on the Eastside Beltline. That sounded fun, I thought. I normally don't put any significance on events such as Leap Day. But four years ago to the date, Atlanta hosted the 2020 US Marathon Olympic Trails, so I guess it was a good day to commemorate with a race. Once it was clear that I could finish the today's work by mid-afternoon, I registered, 5 or 6 hours before the start of the race. I needed only a 15 - 20 minute drive from work to park near the start, so I arrived early enough to pick up my bib without a wait, and then warm up with a few drills and dynamic stretches.
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| With fellow Tucker runners Judy Tennell and Tiffany Haney. This was taken after the race, holding our medals! |
At the announced start time of 6 pm, most runners were still on the New Realm Brewery patio overlooking the Beltline. After nearly 10 minutes, the race organizers brought the group of runners to the Beltline, exactly 80 people (based on finishing numbers), and explained the route and the process for the run. Originally I had thought it would be a timed start, and was wondering how we would work our way around the other Beltline walkers / runners / bikers / rollerbladers / scooter-riders during our race. The organizer announced "It's a time trial. Line up, and as I record your number, you'll begin running, one at a time." That made sense given the narrowness of the Beltline, and sharing the trail with others who probably had no clue that some of us were running a race. I began walking toward the back of the line, and was probably more than halfway back when I finally took a spot in the line. We slowly stepped forward, then I could see that runners were taking off one at a time. Then it was my turn! On his laptop the organizer typed my bib number "282", and as he hit the return key, said "Go!"
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| A popular bar and restaurant on the Eastside Beltline Trail |
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| In line, ready to run as soon as I reached the front of the line. |
I took off like a shot. After a moment, I realized that I was running faster than I had in awhile, and checked my watch to see a 7:50 min / mile pace. "Too fast" I thought, but since we were running north, downhill, I decided to keep going at a quick clip. Around 2 minutes in, I caught up to Judy who had started ahead of me. "What did you get me to sign up for?!" I said as I passed her. I was working pretty hard. After about 4 minutes, I recognized that this pace was unsustainable for much longer, and I deliberately slowed down. I probably did that just in time to avoid over-exertion with 2-1/2 miles still to run. Around 5 minutes elapsed, a couple of people with dogs stopped to talk ahead of me, on the right side of the Beltline which was out of our way, except their dogs began running around aggressively, so I had to navigate around that dog fight. Around six minutes elapsed, the first runner came back having turned around at 1 mile, near Monroe Avenue. With the out-and-back course, it was fun seeing people that had started ahead of me, some running quickly such as Jacque Hartley, and others who had started near the front but were taking it very easy, all cheering each other on as we passed. Around seven minutes elapsed, two bicyclists riding wheelies (on the back wheel only) were coming toward me. The one in the middle of the lane, closer to me, seemed to have less control over the front of his bike. He managed to straighten it out at the same time that I was darting over to my right. Such is life on an early spring evening on the Eastside Beltline. (It will be downright crazy in summer.)
Approaching a green cone marking the turnaround point on the side of the trail, I followed the other runners in making a 180 degree turn, which was pretty tough to manage while trying not to slow down. Immediately after the turnaround, I felt my left shoelace come loose. Within a few seconds it was slapping around wildly. We were now running south-bound and uphill, which would last for the middle half of the total race distance, about 1.5 miles. Mile 1 alert sounded at 8:15. Even though I was running uphill, I didn't feel that I had slowed very much. I briefly thought about pulling over to retie the shoe, but in a 5K race, I felt I couldn't afford the time, after I had run so quickly to this stage. I just hoped that the shoelace wouldn't trip me up. Arggh, if I had only felt this good running uphill in the half-marathon on Sunday! Shortly after passing New Realm Brewery, where we had begun the race, the Mile 2 alert sounded, around 17 minutes elapsed, so 8:43 for mile 2. Even though all of that mile had been uphill, I had run faster than my goal half-marathon pace of 9:09 per mile.
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| I ran the last 2 miles with the left shoe untied. What's annoying is that I had carefully adjusted the tongue and re-tied the laces on both shoes about 5 minutes before the race. |
My heart rate had stayed around 160 beats per second, probably thanks to the crisp 50 deg F temperature. But as we continued to run south and uphill, I could feel myself finally slowing down, now in the 9:20 min/mile pace. "Just hold on, only 1 mile to go." Running through the John Lewis Freedom Parkway underpass, where a drummer was providing solo entertainment, I began looking for landmarks, since I heard that the second turnaround was at the Highland Avenue bridge. Ahead of me were two women runners at approximately my pace, and I managed to keep up with them. Then, one of them, Jessica Rudd, took a walk break. Jessica is a little faster runner than me, and she runs many more miles per week than I do, but .... if this race was the final few miles of Jessica's long run, then maybe I had a chance! Making a gentle right turn, seeing the old Parish restaurant under re-construction on the left side of the trail, the Highland Avenue underpass came into view. Another green cone marked the second turnaround. Jessica was walking the turnaround, so I was going to pass her, but she was also watching out that she wasn't in anyone's way. But a woman, not in the race, walking her dog, was coming from the south. We were about to occupy the same spatiatemporal location. Fortunately she slowed down a little, I slowed down a little and made my turn pretty sharply. I might have turned a foot or so before reaching the green cone, but more importantly, a kinetic two-body collision was safely averted!
I didn't look all the way around, but I no longer saw Jessica and it seemed like there was no one close behind me. I was tempted to slow down, but since this was a time trial, I had no idea how I was doing relative to someone who had started far ahead or far behind me. Then I heard footsteps rapidly advancing on me from the right. A women drew even with me, wearing the distinctive yellow with blue accent Boston Marathon jersey. "OK, she's really good, don't worry that she is passing you." She pulled ahead, but I think I picked up my pace a bit more. Mile 3 alert in 8:44, 25:40 elapsed. If the course was true, I was only one minute from the finish, and from the landmarks, that seemed about right. I kept pushing myself, the sign marking the right turn for the finish line just off of the Beltline came into view. I made the sharp right turn, a few more steps, and I was over the finish line. A staffer from the race company recorded my finish, officially 26:38. I was winded, but recovered quickly. That was a good race - but it showed me just how hard I currently have to work to run a sub-27 minute 5K.
People began to congratulate me. I assumed it was simply because they thought that I had run a good race. But then Jacque Hartley showed me the results on her phone: I was 3rd place overall master. Technically I was the fastest senior master (age ≥ 60), but since master is better than grand master is better than senior master, I was ranked in the more prestigious master group.
It was fun to win a medal, but what made me really happy was seeing that no one older than me outran me. It was close, however: a 68-year-old man who had started and finished a couple of minutes before me, ran a chip time of 26:47, just 9 seconds slower. He was awarded the first place grand master award.
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| 18th overall out of 80 finishers |
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| Positions 12 through 24, so you can see where I rank among other mortals. |
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| My own stats from Garmin |
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