Like I said yesterday, my utter lack of anxiety and nervousness about this race was really odd, and I didn't quite know how to deal with it. I don't know that I've ever gone into a race with no real goals, and with no record I was trying to beat, or award I was trying to win. So it was very strange to feel so calm and relaxed and nonchalant about the whole thing. But hey - I guess nonchalance works, because I ended up doing great!
I parked about half a mile away from the race start, and used that half mile as my warmup jog. And since it was a pretty chilly day, I intentionally got there very close to the start time, so that I wouldn't have too much time standing around waiting. And I timed it perfectly - just as I got there, they announced that everyone should start moving up to the starting line. Perfect!
I chatted with a few people as we waited, and yes, I'll admit that I did feel a few jitters, but they were more of the excited and happy variety. I was wearing my triathlon shirt, and met a guy who had also done the race, and we had a nice chat about it. I'm always happy to talk about that experience with just about anyone : )
The gun went off a few minutes later, and off - and UP - we went. The course starts with a big uphill, and I trudged up with the crowd. There were a lot of us - almost 800 - but I never really felt like I was jockeying for a spot, which was nice.
It took me a short while to recover from that first hill, and I was definitely huffing and puffing for a few minutes, but then I gradually caught my breath and settled into a nice even pace.
I thought it would be tough to run without my iPod, but it really wasn't. I enjoyed hearing the sounds of everyone's feet pounding the pavement along with me, and it was nice for a change to be able to take in the sights AND the sounds of the race. I still prefer having my music, but I'm glad I left it at home this time.
There was a digital clock at Mile 1, and it was right in synch with my Garmin, showing my Mile 1 time at 7:56, which I was very happy with.
Mile 2 actually had no brutal uphill climbs, and even one really nice downhill, so I was able to step it up a bit and ran that mile in 7:39.
I'll be honest, though. It was not all that fun. Not that I wasn't enjoying myself, but I was working hard. I haven't run that fast for that amount of time in I don't even remember how long, and I was feeling it.
But of course I wasn't about to slow down. Nonchalance be damned, it was still a race, and I wasn't going to just saunter down the road for the last 1.1 miles.
So I dug in and kept going, but always with the thought that I knew I needed to save at least a teensy bit for the monster hill at the end of the course.
When I got to the bottom of that hill, I looked up with dread. But then I reminded myself that I faced an even bigger hill than that at Mile 25 of a marathon, and if I could run up that hill, then I could sure as hell run up this one.
And I did. And it hurt. And I was very, very happy to come flying down the other side and around the corner to the finish line.
And I was even more happy when I saw that I was going to beat my time on this course last year. Not a 5K PR, but still a fabulous job - beating last year's time by 30 seconds.
I took a few minutes to catch my breath, grabbed some fruit and a bottle of water, and headed down to the food tent, where I sat and had some BBQ with Shawn and a friend of his, and then left for home.
It was a fun race, and I'm glad I did it again this year.
And I'm already looking forward to my next race - the Jingle Bell 5K on the beach on December 7th. Last year I missed first place in my age group by TWO seconds, so you can bet that I am not going to be approaching that race with the same nonchalance that I approached the Mews!
The final stats -
24:16
173 out of 781 overall
20 out of 115 in my age group
OK. If I can focus my nonchalance and get 24:10, that would be a PR!!! :-) Nah. I think I'll go for a PW :-D
Posted by: Wes | November 25, 2008 at 07:49 AM
Great job with the race. Sometimes going in with no goals let's you have your best race.
Good job racing without the music. I find it very distracting during a race. I only use the iPod on the treadmill.
Have a great Thanksgiving!
Posted by: Chad in the Arizona Desert | November 25, 2008 at 11:09 AM
YAY!! Great job. Those hills are killer!
Posted by: SJ Goody | November 25, 2008 at 11:27 AM