So this is where all the fast people hang out :) I'll try my first race report.
I rolled out of bed at 5AM, downed the Gatorade and Chia seed, and blazed to the center of town to grab my packet at 5:10. Luckily this year was a lot warmer so taking an early bus wasn't an exercise in shivering. I use Chia to avoid having to eat or drink during the race, especially after stopping at an aid station in last year's Nebo Half let Dan Varga get an unbreakable lead on me. The race started right on time, but I don't remember the first three seconds because all of a sudden there was nobody in front of me. The Garmin said I hit 16 MPH right away, but it felt OK and I slowed down a bit to be sure. I kept expecting the royalty to catch up but they were maintaining a short distance back and before I knew it we were passing Mile 1 at 4:53. My Garmin didn't beep until 5:00 though so I don't get to claim a new PB mile. I got passed by almost everyone that was going to pass me in the next two or three miles, most of them as we passed that first mile marker. After that it was a battle to keep speed low enough to not feel any lactic burn, at least until that last hill at mile 10 and maybe a little at the popup after mile 6. I kept a 2 and 2 breathing pattern until then, and once I got into the houses I went to max. I was getting pretty far into the house of pain but still managed to keep it under 6:10 pace for the last 5k, way below my normal 10 hard pace so a great personal run. I got passed by Toni in the last mile, gave him a fist bump since that's all I could do. Nice job Toni! And to you up and coming Masters race gods who passed me (Scott, Toni), I'll be ready for you in 2 years when you get there :)
My old PR on that course was 1:16:10 and I was hoping to break 1:15 so now I feel like Superman. The Nebo half can't come soon enough. And then my first marathon in St George.
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