Magna Classic 5k. I am continually impressed that in a race of only 100 or so runners, the field could be this strong. Bill Cobler chalked it up to respect for Demetrio. That may true, as well as the fact that the course is fast, on the Circuit, and money on the line. Teren Jameson ran 14:10 for the win, a road PR for him for the distance, which says a lot about the race.
I got in nearly five miles for a good warm up. The start of the race was fast--as expected. I went out with the lead pack, but didn't hang on long. I was 10-15 seconds off their first mile, hitting my split in 4:51. From that point on, I was entirely on my own: the two leaders, a group of five, then me, and so it stayed.
I hit the second mile in 10:08, which meant approx. 5:20 for that mile. Third mile is much tougher than the first two, there is something like a "hill," but more of just a gentle "rise," but enough to feel substantially slower. Running on my own with no real prospect of catching the runners ahead, the most I could do was just stay strong, keep running my race, and try to keep making a run at a PR. I don't know what my 3rd mile split was, but I finished in 16:16., a 24 second improvement on my PR here at last year's race.
They had pancakes at the awards ceremony. I rocked a couple.
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