Decided to run this race just a few days ago, so glad I went.
18:53, 1st place age group and second fastest 5K as well as PR for the
course. Ran into Dan French before the race, and then ran into Neil C.
while warming up. Lined up next to Neil and Jacki, saw Jacki take off
and followed behind Neil.
First mile felt oddly easy due to all the
excitement and not watching my pace. There was a time clock at the 1 mile point which said 5:54, although my garmin had the 1st mile split at 6:00 even.
Next two miles were challenging
but I was able to hang on. Because other people were slowing down around me I had to try and catch up to people ahead of me and also I started looking at my watch to make sure my pace wasn't dropping. If I was better at just knowing if my pace was dropping then I might do better
The last about 0.2 miles go off the road, and I think I lost a little bit of focus on speed since I had to focus running on the slightly uneven ground. Got out kicked at the end by a high schooler
who then threw up after crossing the finish line - my hat goes off to
him!
Two years ago when I did this race, I was 20 seconds slower but one the masters division. I was glad I could improve my time and as for the plaque I couldn't have been happier over who won it, a super fast, super nice guy who's always there to help people out and whose career is helping troubled kids.
Lots of fun on a nice flat shaded course around the lake in the
woods north of Brooksville.
Warm-up and Cool Down
5.47
mi
00:52
09:32 pace
2.2 mile warm up before the race,
mostly easy with some strides. Then a little bit over three miles after
the race, most of it was off road with Dan, Chris and Larry through the
woods, a nice treat. Racing flats seem to make good trail shoes after
all - although now they don't look as pristine as they used to!
