Wasatch Walkers 3rd handicapped 5K - 2010

Pre-race: Got up around 6 am, ate 1/2 a bagel & a banana to be sure I had enough carbs, and then goofed around on the computer for a while - e-mail, Facebook, chatted w/coach and also with David, a RW from Perth. David told me I could get a PR :) and was most encouraging. I was feeling optimistic, and my body felt good. I have a little muscle soreness from weights yesterday (pectorals, hamstrings) but not bad, and the feet both felt fine. The toenail is pretty good now, too. I figured I would at least break 29 min if all went well.

The weather was gorgeous. Sunny, calm, and 62F (16.7C). I drove to Liberty Park and got the finish sign up on the pole to mark the end of the race, and then did 1600 easy to warm up, with a couple strides at the end, just like the coach ordered :). I saw a few club members gathering by about 7:45 am, and pretty soon we had a whole bunch of people there (14)! It was the best turnout we'd had for a club race, and we had 3 new members attend. Fantastic! For two of the new people, it was their first 5K. We got the race underway, and while I was waiting for my turn to start, I gave one of the new people, Joe, a few racewalking tips.

Race: The first 2K felt awesome. I was cruising, and my HR was a little high (probably adrenaline; this often happens to me in races) but all seemed well. I got to 1K in 5:43 (ok, it was more like 1.02k) w/ave HR 162 and then to 2K in 5:40 (this was spot-on) with ave HR 171. Then I cannot figure out what happened. I didn't FEEL any different, but going up the slight incline on the south end of the park I slowed down. My HR was high (ave for 3rd km was 174), effort was high, and it's not even really a hill - just a little incline - but I got to 3K in 6:16. I could not believe how slow that was and at this point wrote off a new PR and getting under 29 min, though I kept pushing just as hard, because I didn't want to be any slower than I had to be. My breathing was hard but still under control, and I surprisingly picked up a little time on the slight downhill on the north end of the park, hitting 4K in 5:48. Around this point I started passing club members; I couldn't catch them all, but I tried. I did the last K in 6:03 for a total of 29:32. I finished 5th in the race, earning another 5 points for our season-long competition.

Post-race: Thoroughly enjoyed meeting our three new club members Joe, Dina, and Michelle. Michelle finished her first 5K ever, and finished under 1 hour. She's just beginning the journey I was on to lose weight and get fit, so I especially wanted to encourage her. She was SO excited to finish her first race, and that really moved me. I caught her enthusiasm, and so I didn't mope too much about my time. Besides, this is my fastest time all season (by 6 seconds), so even though I didn't get a sub-29 like I thought I could, at least there was a little improvement. I digress. Hanging out with everyone was great! Nancy and I gave some RW tips to the new club members, and nobody seemed to mind that I forgot to bring the medals for the first 3 finishers. Oops! I had to leave before I wanted to, because I had to pick up the kids.

More photos here (still uploading, but should be ready in a few minutes).

Next race: Murray Fun Days 5K on July 3rd.