So, today I ran a little race close to my parent's house. There was a possibility that one fast guy would show up, but otherwise I knew I would be running alone. I was actually kind of dissapointed when the fast guy didn't show up (his name is Joe Gray) as it is difficult to motivate oneself when running alone. It also didn't help matters that I came down with a cold yesterday and I wasn't feeling 100% and the wind was gusting and blowing to high heaven. Before the race I also met a fellow blogger, Dale who I had never met before.
The race started and I took off and was alone for the entire race. The course was an out and back with a slight uphill during the first half, and of course a slight downhill on the way back. The wind was gusting off and on the entire race, but it was the worst during the second mile and the first part of the third mile. I started out the race running about a 5:00 effort and ran the first mile in 5:08. I then hit the 5k turn-around in 8:09 and hit the 2 mile mark in 10:38 (5:30 second mile... ouch!). I made it to the 5 mile turn-around in 13:20 (2:42 for a half mile). I missed the 3 mile marker, but I made it to 4 miles in 21:03, (7:43 from 2.5 - 4 miles) and then finished with a 5:02 last mile to finish in 26:05 by my watch (official timing was messed up so I never found out an official time). I timed the last 200 meters of the race, which were on the track in 34 seconds.
So, not as fast as I really would have liked, but considering the wind and being just a little under the weather I think I did fine for a mid winter race with no competition. Hopefully things will go more smoothly for me as the year progresses. | 