I don't have my official time, but this is close enough. Going into this race, I wasn't quite sure I actually wanted to race. I went kinda spur of the moment, after debating on it for about a week after a former student asked me if I was running this race. So I decided last night that I would definitely go, and in the morning, the whole fam decided to come with me. We rushed out of the house because the race was about 40 minutes away and I wanted to get there early enough to register and warm up. I realized part way there that I forgot my watch and then decided that it was probably a good thing.
I got there in plenty of time, but wasn't eager to warm up. Instead I talked for a while with a family of a former student (different one) and then went off to at least warm up a little. It was nice, but the air was a little crisp and I wanted to get warm enough to dump my long sleeved shirt. Then at the start line I saw the woman who beat me in my last 10K about a month ago. I decided that I would tuck in behind her so I could keep an eye on her while I was running. I don't like not knowing who's behind me. The first mile I was right on her tail (it was 7:25, but it felt nice and relaxed, probably because it was downhill) then I kept on her for a while (second mile 7:35), but lost sight of her somewhere around 2.5 miles. My 3rd mile was again at 7:25 and I was still feeling pretty great. At mile 4 (no split. I wasn't wearing a watch and there was no one reading times), I passed one female runner and decided that I would put on a little speed to discourage her from staying with me. While doing that, I passed another female runner and kept up my speed for the same reason. While doing THAT, I passed a male runner. He tried to stick with me for a bit while we were running along a bike path, then dropped back, but for the next 1.5 miles he would creep up and try to pass me and I would keep his speed with him until he dropped back more. That battle helped me to gain a little bit of ground on another female runner. She had a really strange gait and I really wanted to beat her. At mile 5 I determined that miles 4 and 5 averaged 7:40, and I was bound and determined to speed up so that I could pass that lady. When we turned off the bike path, the man directing traffic told me that I was the 3rd woman. I thought about that lady who beat me last month, and thought she must have gotten a lot faster, but knew that I could beat the second place woman.
I didn't pass her until we were turning towards the finish chute. My husband got a 5 second video on his phone (he was trying to take a picture and had it in the wrong setting) and I looked really strong. I wish he would have filmed the whole finish. As is I watched that 5 second clip a bunch of times. [Update: I forgot the first time around to mention that the woman I
was chasing early on, the one who beat me last month, actually only ran the 5K, so it was okay that I
lost her early on] Then the kids ran in the kids' race. I ran with Eli. After the awards were handed out (I got first place in my age division, but since the winner was my age, I feel that I really got second) we drove all around Monticello, just sightseeing. They have a really cool nature park, Allerton, that I always enjoy going to. So, while I am indifferent to my time (didn't PR, but I was only 15 seconds off from last month, and I felt WAY more comfortable today), I am ecstatic about the way I raced. I don't think I've ever felt good about the way I race. Maybe I've had a breakthrough.
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