Murray Fun Days 5K 2010

Train hard, race hard, but not much in the way of results. That's kind of the way it's been, but I am doing the best I can, and I'm trying to stay positive.

I had a great first 3K (17:14), and then I ran out of gas. Not sure why. I gave it my best effort, so I am pleased with that. And I did get a season's best time of 29:23 (my watch) or 29:19 (official). Still, it's slower than I hoped for, but I guess I still have a few more weeks before the big races. Anything can happen. I'm working VERY hard to be positive here; being negative won't help anyway.

The first 1K was uphill (14m), and I did it in 5:51, ave HR 161. That seemed like a good pace to start the race, given the hill. Then I kept it up and did 5:40 on the second km (uphill 4m), ave HR 172. On the third km, I really kept in mind that I wanted to hold the pace. I tend to slow a bit on it when I'm not focused, and my coach didn't want me to lose time there. I held the pace very well on this nice downhill (10m) in 5:43, ave HR 177. I was working hard, though, and was concerned about hanging on. My friend Sarah, who got a new PR today in the 5K run, passed me right about here. I was happy for her and surprised to see her pass me. That was a bit disheartening but then again, she was running, and I really was happy that she was having a good race (she finished with a 28:55! Yay Sarah!). My thought here was that I was on PR pace if I could just keep the pace to the finish. But the slight uphill on the 4th km going up State St to Vine St really took the wind out of my sails. I only managed a 5:56 with ave HR of 176. I didn't have any gas left in the tank, yet again. I must confess that I am really sick of running out of steam in races this year. This has never happened to me before and it's frustrating. The last km was hot. The weather was really good for July (65F, 18C) with a nice breeze and low humidity, but there wasn't much breeze on Vine Street and the sun was beating down on me. I don't think the heat did me in though; I was already cooked for whatever reason. The last km was 1.07 km on my Garmin, so perhaps the course was slightly long? No, couldn't be...my Garmin is just off. This is a USATF road racing circuit race, and I am sure the course was properly measured. Anyway, the last 1.07 km on my Garmin was a whopping 6:12. That works out to 5:48/km so I guess it wasn't too bad, but somewhere something is off, so we'll never know for sure.

Anyway, I have mixed feelings about this. I am happy for a season's best time, but disappointed that I didn't break 29 minutes. I thought for sure I'd do that today. On the good side, I really enjoyed seeing my friends there, and they all did well. Sarah got her PR, Diane (age 70, my hero!) got a 39:09 (walking!) for first in her age group vs runners, and Kathy (walking!) got a 38:09 and 3rd in her age group vs runners. I finished 13th in my age group; they didn't list how many 40-44 there were so I'm not sure of my placement. I did note that the 3rd place runner in my age group finished in just under 26 minutes, and I feel sure I could do that time running. If I was in this for the glory part I guess I'd have to start running; as a racewalker I won't win any prizes in a running race at my age.

The kids did the kids' 1/2 mile race right after the adults' 5K race. It was SO cute, and Calvin and Michelle both ran the whole thing. Poor Michelle tripped at the finish line and scraped her hands, but they both finished and got their T-shirts, Murray Fun Days 5K dog tags, and goody bag. Then we watched the parade and the kids collected a whole bunch of candy that was being tossed out from the floats. The best part of today was not the race but all the fun I had with family and friends. That's what it's about anyway.

Race details (splits etc. on Garmin Connect - note that I pushed my watch button after the race was long over for about 1-2 sec, so the last km isn't right - it was 6:12 not 6:13, and race time was 29:23 on the watch).

More pictures on Picasa.