The Mid-Winter Classic (Read 446 times)

Well, I finally got to show off my running ahead shirt in a race. The logo on the front was mostly hidden by my singlet, but you could see it in the back between my should blades no problem, and that's where it matters more anyway, right? The race directors could not have asked for a better day. The weather was beautiful, plenty of volunteers showed up, there was a record turn out for the race, and nothing went wrong. Things ran so smoothly that the race directors got to leave 3 hours earlier than they did last year, in fact. You can read the full race report if you are interested at: http://news.runtowin.com/2008/02/03/cape-elizabeth-mid-winter-classic-10-miler-2008.html The race report includes links to photos for anybody that was there. My own race went pretty well. I said before the race that I wanted to go out in 6:15 (NOT 5:45) and then carry 6 minute pace through the next few miles and see what I had in the second half. My original goal (a few months ago) was 57-60 minutes, and I was going to aim for 60 since I haven’t done the speed work, just the base work. I did wind up going out in 5:45, but then I settled in at that pace for almost the entire race. My splits were (approximately): 5:45, 5:59, 5:43, 5:45, 5:43, 5:51, 5:47, 5:56, 5:49, 5:37. All in all, a very even pace to bring me through in 57:58 for a 13th place finish. The awards this year were backpacks, so I got one for 3rd in the 25-29 age group. Whee! And, for those wanting to see the running ahead shirt in action, here are some shots I found of myself in the various photo archives from the race (I didn't bother copying or resizing them, so links only): + Near mile 4 (and 2 seconds later) + Coming up to Mile 5 + Mile 6: Photo 1, Photo 2, Photo 3 + At Mile 9 - okay, this one isn't of me, I'm not a moose. But I thought it was a good photo. + About 200 feet from the finish line - I made it a point to finish strong, and it's a downhill finish. I was 2 seconds behind my teammate, who spent the majority of the race running the same pace as I was about 20 seconds ahead of me.

Reading your post made my legs hurt