How do I get myself talked into these things? This one went something like this . . . I was having lunch with my friend Katie who said "Marcy and I are going to run the UCity 10K, why don't you do it too?" Sure, why not! And then Katie bails--with good reason--but I'm already registered and committed. Commitable may actually be the more appropriate phrase.
The day was hot and the course was hilly. I did a mile warm up before the race down Delmar to the shop and back. I also made sure I was at the front of the field. This is a new habit for me since I never have considered myself much of a runner and didn't really think I belonged up there. I also was able to find Marcy.
The course started on a slight uphill that was about 1/4 long. My original plan was to stay with Marcy for the race and let her pace me through. We got the start and were off. I stayed on Marcy's shoulder and followed her as we weaved through the field. (There was a 5km that started on the same course). We were almost to the top of the hill and my legs were itching to open up so I went around Marcy and started stretching out my stride. I prayed I didn't pay for it later. I had some watch malfunction (i.e. operator error) between mile one and three but I think my first two splits were around 7:34. The first two miles of the race were all on Delmar, which was mentally draining to me. I was ready to turn and see something else. I grabbed a cup of water just before mile two and kept going. The course was rolling hills throughout and mostly shaded for the first four miles.
At mile three I realized my pace had slowed (8:01) but I felt comfortable with what I was doing and knew it was something I could sustain for the rest of the race. Between mile four and five I was passed by a handful of girls. Two of them passed me, but not at a pace that I couldn't sustain so I sped up a bit and got in behind one of them. I stayed just off her left shoulder and worked to stay with her. A few times I felt like I could push harder, but held back a bit. One of the two girls pulled away and a little after mile five, I pushed passed the girl I was following. I turned the final corner and saw the finishing arch and the mile six mark. I worked on speeding up a little and finishing strong. I was hot and tired at the end, but not dead. In my mind I had wanted to run it in 45, but knew that was a big stretch. My time was 48:39. I was 78th overall in the race. 19th out of 240 women and 6th in my age group.
Here's a little video of my finish.
The course started on a slight uphill that was about 1/4 long. My original plan was to stay with Marcy for the race and let her pace me through. We got the start and were off. I stayed on Marcy's shoulder and followed her as we weaved through the field. (There was a 5km that started on the same course). We were almost to the top of the hill and my legs were itching to open up so I went around Marcy and started stretching out my stride. I prayed I didn't pay for it later. I had some watch malfunction (i.e. operator error) between mile one and three but I think my first two splits were around 7:34. The first two miles of the race were all on Delmar, which was mentally draining to me. I was ready to turn and see something else. I grabbed a cup of water just before mile two and kept going. The course was rolling hills throughout and mostly shaded for the first four miles.
At mile three I realized my pace had slowed (8:01) but I felt comfortable with what I was doing and knew it was something I could sustain for the rest of the race. Between mile four and five I was passed by a handful of girls. Two of them passed me, but not at a pace that I couldn't sustain so I sped up a bit and got in behind one of them. I stayed just off her left shoulder and worked to stay with her. A few times I felt like I could push harder, but held back a bit. One of the two girls pulled away and a little after mile five, I pushed passed the girl I was following. I turned the final corner and saw the finishing arch and the mile six mark. I worked on speeding up a little and finishing strong. I was hot and tired at the end, but not dead. In my mind I had wanted to run it in 45, but knew that was a big stretch. My time was 48:39. I was 78th overall in the race. 19th out of 240 women and 6th in my age group.
Here's a little video of my finish.
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| Crossing the line, happy to be finished. *photo credit: John Musselman |
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