50,965 runners finished Peachtree this year. This is the largest race I have ever run. I did'nt have much of a sense of the enormity of it though as, thankfully, I was well seeded and got to start in the first wave. That also gave me the pleasure of having a wide open space to warm up and meet up with fellow Nike Fleet Fleet Team members before the race.
I was not feeling 100% as I was dealing with a head cold and slight fever the day before the race, but I kept hydrated to try a stave off the full effects of whatever virus was working on me. I felt OK on race morning and mentally put all that aside to concentrate on running a good race.
The flag dropped at 7:30 and we were off. The Peachtree course is a point-to-point course that follows Peachtree St south for 5.6 miles then a left turn onto 10th for the last .6 to the finish at Peidmont Park near downtown Atlanta. I started on the left side of the road knowing that the road mainly curved to the left as it went south. Fellow team mate Marty Clark who had run the race before was near me and we ran together. The first mile is mainly flat and aside for some early jockying for position, went by nicely at 5:45. Miles 2 and 3 are both downhill and went by quickly in 5:40 and 5:36. Marty and I were still running together. I made a point to note my time at the 5K mark and was happy to see 17:45, this had me on pace to run my goal of 36:30.
Miles 4 and 5 are uphill with a few flat sections. I pulled away from Marty during the climbs but he never lost contact with me. I like running hills, but only a certain distance and grade. Two miles of steady climb ate away at my pace and I felt my goal slipping away. I clocked 6:36 and 6:34 for miles 4 and 5.
The 6th mile is mainly small rolling hills and Marty and I would take turns passing each other. We made the turn onto 10th together and traded positions a couple times running towards the finish, but with about .1 to go he had another gear that I could not match. 6th mile 6:06 last .2 in 1:22
I did not make my "A" goal but was happy that I met my "B" goal of placing higher(278) than my race number(356) and running sub 38 minutes.
I don't know if I'll run Peachtree again but it was a great experience to run in the worlds largest 10K. | 