They all can't be "easy" runs.

This is an out and back course. You go over 2 bridges. I'm sure it is scenic, but this morning I ran through very dense fog. There was @ 100 yards of visibility, I'm guessing. I felt the humidity in my breathing towards the end of the race. Going back over the big bridge at the end was a little more difficult than I anticipated, and I'm blaming the fog. The race results aren't up on the website yet. Maybe they will be here: http://www.saynotodrugs.com/finish-results tomorrow.

Since they started the 5k-ers and 10k-ers together, I knew it would be crowded at the start. My plan was to dodge people until I got to the bridge, then (I figured) that the pack would clear on the uphill. The bridge downhill would propel me to a faster pace. My plan was to hold this pace as long as possible. I actually executed everything in my plan, which is a new one for me. Usually, I hear the gun, and then forget everything I planned, but not today. There were a couple of surprises in the race. First, the distance from the second bridge to the turn around point was longer than I expected. Second, on the way back, the ramp down from the second bridge was what they called a "helix." It is like a 6'-8' wide circling ramp down. This is at @ 5 miles into the race, or so. When you go through this part of the track, you are now mixed in with all of the super slow 5k-ers. So the narrow course width, coupled with running in tight circles while descending 40 feet or so, in a crowded area, has a huge impact on the pace. Once you get through running down that spiraling ramp, you go through 2 back-to-back hairpin turns, which I can't see how anyone could run through that part of the course without stopping. I had to stop to make the second hairpin. Once you come out of the hairpins, you are going uphill. So at that point, pace was entirely lost. It was almost like starting a new race. Given the size of the field in this race, I didn't think I would place in my age group, so that was a nice surprise. I was happy beating my goal time of 42 minutes. They gave me a plaque for my 3rd place age group finish. Interestingly, there was 12 seconds between 1st and 3rd place. 12 seconds! That will drive me nuts later. They served blueberry pancakes after the race. Good Stuff! Also, the shirt is pretty sweet.

I really need to lay down some miles for next month's marathon. Time to get going.