Turtles Can Run

For some reason I was really nervous about this race. I think I always say that.  But this time I had some added concerns.  I was tired,  I have had sluggish slow  all week.  My second concern was that I knew other people doing the race, many of the ladies in the running group I run with were going to be there.  I really did not want to bonk in front of people I knew.  Having people I knew there though was actually really nice.  It was fun having people to talk to before and after the race.  Last but not least I was scared there was going to be a huge thunderstorm but there was no rain.  YAY!!

My goals for the race today were to beat last years time and maintain a pace of 7:45 min/mile. I warmed up along the first half mile of the course and wasn’t sure that I could maintain a fast pace going uphill that first mile.  So my doubts were still very present at the start line.  I got up close to the front and noticed I was surrounded by men and that scared me a little because I knew they were all probably the fast men and I didn’t want to get caught up with them for the first quarter of a mile and then die.  So I kept telling myself to just keep it at 7:45 min/mile.  We started running and of course I look down after a couple of minutes and I am running at a 6:30 min/mile pace.  So I backed off ignored those around me and just tried to stay in my groove.  I finished the first just a little under my goal pace.  I slowed a bit my second and third mile. It was really hard because the fast crowd was too far ahead for me to catch and I don’t pay attention to the people behind me so I felt like I was racing alone.  One of my friends caught of with me at mile 2.5 and that helped me start to pick my pace back up. By mile 4  I was back on pace and mile 5 was faster  than my goal pace.  I forgot to turn my garmin off so I couldn’t see  the split for the last mile but if my calculations are correct it was a 7:22 which would make it the fastest mile.  My  chip time was 38:47 average pace exactly 7:45 min/mile, how weird is that!  Last year’s chip time for the same race was 43:24 average pace 8:41 min/mile.  So I met both of my goals.  Bonus: I got a little trophy for finishing 2nd in my age group. Woot.

After the race we cheered for the other ladies in our running group.  Everybody did incredibly well.  They always impress me with how they constantly improve on their speed and distance.  Three of the other ladies in the running group also placed for their age group, it was awesome.  So much fun

Filed under: Races, Running Blog