That was a good confidence booster! I didn't know what to expect from this race or course. I knew it was hilly and hard. I warmed up 3 miles and then ran another .5 with Bill. I was happy to see Bill, because I knew he had been running some fast 5ks. If I could keep up with him, I should run a good time. The first mile climbs significantly. Two girls went put hard. I figured either they were really fast and could beat me anyway, or they went out too hard. They went out too hard. I just focused on staying with Bill the whole time. It took a while to make up for the slow first mile. I tried using my downhills, but was pleasantly surprised that my uphills were pretty strong. I could tell with about .2 left that I could break 18 if I kept turning over. I couldn't quite catch Bill, but I managed a 17:53. I was pretty stoked to run sub eighteen on a hard course on marathon trained legs. I will take it! Thanks Bill for pulling me to a good time. I cooled down 3.4 miles with Bill and some of the East runners. Yay for a confidence boost! PS. 5ks hurt! | 