It was a bit warm this morning for the 15K national champs. At race start it was OK, but by the time I got to 5K I was pretty hot and dumping water all over myself. At every water station I drank and tried to keep cool; it wasn't THAT hot (maybe 70-75 by the finish?) but hot enough for one who is not acclimatized. It was quite humid too, and still, which didn't help.
I felt sluggish on the warm-up. I walked once around the course, which is 1703m, and threw in some strides. I just didn't feel smooth and fluid, and I was a bit sleepy/tired/off. No excuses, just explaining how I felt. I was concerned after the warm-up, but you never know.
On the first (partial) lap I had planned to do a 7:35. I did a 7:55. Oops. That wasn't too good. (Though later, my friend Alex told me that he was also 20 sec fast on that first partial lap and then when he got to the start it was right on, so he wondered if the course was measured correctly?). In any case, I eased up just a bit and did the 1st whole lap in 10:02 - a bit slower than my planned 9:48 but not too awful. I tried to speed up a bit but my body just didn't feel right. I just never really got in the groove today. I think I was low on carbs, because after I took my gel at about 8km I felt better and was able to go faster; however, that coincided with my friend Alex passing me and encouraging me to keep up with him, so it's hard to know.
When I got to 5K in 29:22 I knew it was NOT my day to get the All-American standard of 1:26:37. I'd have to do about 28:50/5k to get that, and I was already hopelessly behind and not feeling good. Then I switched my goal to keeping the pace and beating last year's time, which I was able to do.
My next laps were 10:14, 10:15, 10:21, then Alex caught me and I went 10:08, 10:05, 10:05 and finally 9:56 for 1:28:41 on the lap counter's sheet (though the official time ended up 1:28:42). I screwed up on my watch and missed the first 0.2km or so, and so my watch time is not at all right though the splits are good after the 1st one.
Looking at the pictures, I was struggling the whole race - I am all work and no play in my face. It was just a hard race. I'm proud that I pushed hard and regained my composure after the 10:21 lap and finished strong. I worked really hard today; my average heart rate was 161 and max was 174. I gave it my all, and hey, I can't complain about a PR, 2nd place in the Open division, first place in Masters (ages 35+) and winning $100, can I? Besides, I got to hang out with amazing racewalkers all weekend :).
Garmin data here.
Pictures here.
5 comments:
2'nd overall? You were behind many early on, so evidently you paced yourself well given the conditions. Congratulations!
I was the 3rd woman --- Rachel Seaman and Miranda Melville were faster; however, Rachel is Canadian and hence I was 2nd in this USA championship race.
About 10 men finished ahead of me, so if you include them I was 13th or so...
Yes, I paced myself OK given my split times. Went out a little too fast but then settled in. Didn't have that extra oomph today. Oh well! That's athletics for you...
Awesome job Tammy. I felt the heat too, lead legs on the last two laps and I usually have a big kick. Thanks for cheering us on! You are an inspiration. Reading your blog gets me moving on those days when a workout is the last thing I want to do. Balancing being a mom and working full time with long distance training is quite a feat!
Hi Kristin! I see you figured out how to comment. I love that you read my blog and that it helps you get motivated. You did a great job this year finishing 4 min faster than last year :). Keep it up!
am just now catching up to see what happened in the race - congrats on your latest accomplishment! Sounds like it was tough but YOU are tougher! Hope you're feeling proud of yourself - you deserve to!
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