PM: Day 1 of Region VII
I had a really good race today.
I started with a 2 mile warm up and up then stretched. I really wanted to break 4:40 today but we had some really fast wind so I knew that it was going to be hard if I do it. The race started out and I made an early move. About 100 M in the race I joined the leading pack. Coming out of the wind I slowed it down just a notch because I knew that I had went to hard through the head wind and wanted to recover using the tailwind down the straightaway. My first lap was a 69, which meant I was on track to achieving my goal. My second lap I told myself that I had to stay strong and not let the wind get to me and so I went hard into that head wind so that I wouldn't lose a lot of momentum. Coming around my second lap I began to be boxed in by a mountain view runner and Ian and the person in front of me was slowing down which meant that I had to slow down with him, so I made a quick decision and made a really risky move. I slowed down just enough to let Ian take a small lead, and then I went all the way out into lane 3 and really pushed the pace to get ahead of the group. Coming onto the last 500 M of the race I was stride for stride with the leader and I had two choices. I could use him as a wind breaker and try to out kick him, or I could go for glory and take the lead and I went for glory. At the 400 M mark I began to really push myself because I knew that I had to run hard in the head wind and hard once I got out, so I tried to create some distance between me and the second guy. Once I was halfway through the head wind, I ran as hard as I could, leaving nothing on the track and I ended up running a 4:42.85, winning my heat, getting 10th overall and almost scoring for Alta. If it wasn't for the wind I knew for sure that I could break a 4:40, but I'll take what I can get. I was really happy with the way I raced and the way I moved throughout the race. Next time, I would have gotten out faster so that I wouldn't have to use the energy to make a move so early in the race.
Later I ran the 800 M leg of the 1600 M sprint relay, and got 5th. I feel like in that race I could have kicked harder, earlier and maybe gotten us closer to the 4th place team.
Tomorrow I race the 3200 M and maybe the 800 M (I looked it up and they will let you run 4 events). My goal for the 3200 M is to hit a 5:00 mile for my first mile and then race the second. In the 800 I want to PR.
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