Joe Bell and I arrived about an hour before the race. The weather couldn't have been much better. 54 degrees and overcast. A little windy. We ran a couple of miles to warm the legs up and arrived at the start line just in time for the start.
Mile 1: With the wind, but climb from 459 to 488 (29 feet). Joe and I just barely got to the starting line in time. Like any race with 7,000, there was a lot of bumping and jockeying for position. I tried to stay on the centerline of the road and just fall into a comfortable pace. 6:51 for the first mile..
Mile 2: 488 to 470 (down 18 feet). Again running south with the wind. I can't see Joe anymore, but not suprised by that. I feel very comfortable. The crowd is thinning just a tad. 6:42 for mile two.
Mile 3: 470 to 509 (up 39 feet). We are entering Iroquois Park. We will do a loop in this park over the next 2.5 miles. There is no flat ground here. Up and down throughout. It is wooded, so not much effect from the wind. I take a gell shot to help with the hills. 7:00 flat for mile three
Mile 4: 509 to 568 (up 59 feet). I'm not feeling as ccomfortable now. There was about a quarter mile down in this segment which was nice to catch my breath. Then up again. 7:12 for mile four
Mile 5: 568 to 578. This segment was rolling gaining and loosing as much as 35 feet of elevation at a time. Half way. 7:22 for mile five. 34:27 for the first half.
Mile 6: 578 to 575. This mile had a very nice downhill. I thought we may be done with the park now. 5.5 mile on Garmin shows 509 feet. Well we had to climb back up. My legs feel pretty good. We are still in a wooded area so wind is not a factor. By now, the crowd is nothing more that essentially a single file line trying to find the shortest route around this winding rolling road. 7:10 for mile six.
Mile 7: 575 to 469. We are leaving the park behind finally. With a lazy s-curve, we double back onto runners in the first half of the race. There is good croud support here. The wind is now in our face and will stay there til the end. With the downhill and a jolt from the crowd, I find a good stride and get a little leg speed back. 6:35 for mile seven
Mile 8: 469 to 487. We are now running on the flat. Again there are still runners on there way out. I chat with a couple of people on the way. I'm now passing people really for the first time all race. I know my pace hasn't ticked up. However, the effort has. I'm giving it all I've got now. 7:02 for mile eight.
Mile 9: 487 to 458. Not much to talk about. We are all just pushing toward the finish. 7:06 for mile nine.
Mile 10: 458 to 461: The mile is flat, but the overpass seems much harder than anticipated. I can see Papa John's stadium now. I also start to hear the announcer. The last mile is in the stadium, running 3/4 the way around the football field on artificial turf. The corners are a little tight, but its nice to be done. 6:55 for ten. 34:29 for the second 5 miles. A near perfect split! | 