AM: 3 miles, couple strides.
PM: 9 miles.
Fun local race last night. It rained lightly until about 15 minutes before race start. This plus the cloudy skies made for better conditions than we've had in weeks.
After months of battling injury, a teammate and great runner - Sean Gallagher - made it out last night. He is not near peak fitness, but he still took the race out fast with a couple high school kids and other ambitious types trailing in a phalanx behind. He's one of those guys who will go out hard no matter what, and it's pretty awesome.
I wasn't sure what to expect from most of those runners, but one guy I knew was serious was Mike, who was hanging a bit back with me. After about a third of a mile we moved up to the front and starting setting the pace. One of the kids came with us, and lasted until about mile 1.25.
This event is a precursor to an IndyCar race held annually in downtown St. Petersburg. The 5k winds through the narrow canyons of walls built up to contain the cars. I ran steady and tried to slowly lower the pace. Mike remained with me until shortly after the 2 mile mark, when I was able to open a small gap. With him close behind, I was motivated to keep moving - knowing that if we were close at all near the finish line he would crush me.
Sadly, reports of the short course proved true. It measured between 3.04-3.06 from the informal survey I took. We estimated it took 20-30 seconds off an actual 5k time.
I was very happy with this race. I wanted a test run before the track race in two weeks, and I was hoping I had some 5k fitness. Everything came off well, and I think I have a shot at running 15:4x on the track.
One impressive constrast that really stood out was how far Mike has come in a year. We raced a 5k for the first time almost a year ago. In that span he has gone from a guy in the upper 17s to hovering close to the 16 minute barrier. At this time next year, I'll be chasing him.
Splits:
- 5:09
- 5:06
- 5:02
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