5:30 PM - It was sunny most of the day as I ran errands with my mom. She, my brothers and my sister are all going to Cape Cod for four days tomorrow. I drove to Jeremy's house and picked him up at five and then into Saratoga Springs and picked up Jonathan from Borders. We went to Wilton and signed in and as tonight was the last race of five in the series this summer it was bittersweet. Though I'm not a fast runner, the 5ks are fun just to challenge myself and have fun running with friends. Didn't want the series to end, and I'm happy to say that both Jonathan and Jeremy said they'd be interested in doing some 5ks or other races around the area if I get them information. It's cool getting friends to do stuff they are initially hesitant about.
WARM UP: Only Jonathan did the warmup, as Jeremy said he barely had enough in him to do the 5k, much less a warm up BEFORE the race. I eased into a jog with Jonathan and we talked about the race, and then I mentioned the Japanese workout I've been doing, the one I call the Four Minutes of Hell in which you do 20 seconds as hard as you can, 10 seconds recovery and repeat x 8. Talked about VO2 max and how this workout has been shown to help moreso than LSD runs in that respect. It was a good time. Did .77 miles of warmup total in 7:41 (10:02 pace). Stretched and got ready for the race. Right calf still felt weird walking, but for some reason it doesn't hurt when I run on it.
THE RACE:
MILE 1: (7:13) Race went off as scheduled, and I got caught between a rock and a hard placed. It's easy to get boxed out at the beginning, and I was somewhat hesitant because my right calf has bothered me the last week. I started off farther back than I arguably should have, and tried pretty hard to lift the pace and get up with some of the people I usually run with the last couple races. The humidity was a factor and even though it got cloudy right around race time, I was soon sweating up a storm. Pushed hard on the uphills and on the sandy flat going into the 90 degree turn. Hit the first mile marker way too fast, close to 7:13. Settled in behind two other guys wearing orange shirts, and as I made numero tres in that category, we were an informal team for a time.
MILE 2: (8:03) The second mile as always kicked my butt. Right after the first mile marker there are two more steep hills and some windy single track. I stayed with the other members of team orange, but I could hear people coming up on us. We were reeling in some other runners up front, but we too were becoming the hunted. I saw the kid that I passed at the 1.5 mile marker the last two races, and tried to catch up to him, but I never did. Saw him again in the third mile before I faded bad. Kind of bonked at the end of mile 2 as I carelessly forgot my breathing rhythm. Usually in races, intervals and tempo runs I breathe every third step. I caught myself breathing every fourth but too late. Bad news. Got a stitch right under my right lung. Tried to get rid of it, but it hurt bad and couldn't.
MILE 3: (8:28) Crossed the road and into the woods for the last mile plus. Felt good towards the end as the stitch let up on the last big downhill. Downer was team orange kept cruising along and I fell by the wayside dealing with the cramp. Was a little disappointed I didn't do better than my best this season, but I haven't done any intervals in the last two weeks so I understand why I had a hard time lifting the pace, but an equally easy time doing a cool down when both Jeremy and Jonathan were completely spent. It's kind of funny to think I can't hang with Jonathan for a 5k but I can go and run a 10-miler at 9:30 or 10:00 miles and not even really be tired. A group of four ladies passed me before the last major hill. Man now I know what humbling and chicking is like. I didn't get chicked. I got UBER chicked!! Haha! All in good fun though. Still had a blast! Finished hard and my last tenth of a mile was run at 5:36 pace! So it's nice to know I still got a little bit of a kick in me. Now how to harness that kick and use it to translate to a better 5k time. I think with all the distance training I have forgot just how hard and how taxing a 5k can be! Half marathons are easier in a sense I think than the 5k. Phew! I finished in 24:09, good for 20th place. Jonathan ran low 21:00s for 7th place, a three place improvement from last time, and Jeremy ran 31:47 good for a minute and a half improvement. Still managed a 7:47 pace on a hard course. I am determined though to run in the 22s next year on this course. What a great race series though this summer!
Total Time: 24:09 Total Distance: 3.10 miles Average Pace: 7:47
COOL DOWN: Ran the cool down with Jonathan, though he stopped after about .25. He got a cramp after eating a piece of watermelon. I went another .25, turned around and picked him up and jogged him to the car where he met Jeremy. I then went out on the roads and did another six or seven minutes. Thought I saw the punks from last time, but it turned out to be a boy and girl I hand't seen before on bikes just out for a nice ride. Only saw one or two other runners. Didn't stay for the awards ceremony because I had to get Jonathan and Jeremy home as I was the taxi today.Total Cooldown was 15:23 for 1.55 miles, good for 9:54 average pace. Had a great time. I'm looking forward to the half marathon! Also found out the organizer for this race is doing the full marathon at the same event. Cool!
Total Time: 47:13 Total Distance: 5.42 miles Average Pace: 8:42 | 
