Short version: On Thursday, July 4^th, 2013 I ran the NYC Runs Firecracker 10K on Roosevelt Island (little island in the East River between Manhattan and Queens) and failed miserably at my only goal, which was sub-60.

Long Version: Here is the story of how I continue to have unfinished business with the 10K. I think the 10K and I are officially in a fight. I ran my first in December and put up a 1:07:46 which I was thrilled with at the time. The second one I registered for in January I had to DNS because my ITBS was terrible. I finally ran my second one on May 19^th. I had high hopes for a sub-60. My first big goal for this year was a sub-30 5K, and I shocked myself by getting it by a considerable margin when I managed a 28:30 on April 6^th, and then followed it up with a new PR on May 5^th with 28:16.  Then I decided that my next big goal was the sub-60 10K. A sub-60 SHOULD be possible for me. Plugging those 2 5K race times into McMillan it predicted me at 59:11 and 58:42 respectively. If McMillan thinks I can get 58:42 then 59:59 shouldn’t be unreasonable. But May 19^th it did not happen. I started out fine. I was following my race plan and was averaging 9:41 pace for the first 5K and then was going to kick it up a notch for the last 3.1… but then my ITBS ended up acting up during the 4^th mile and I slowed down considerably and ended up with a disappointing 1:05:02. After I took it easy and let the ITBS issue go away, I had a really strong last month of training. I am running more miles than ever before and was excited to have a redemption 10K on July 4^th. I WOULD get sub-60. Spoiler Alert: I failed.

The race, the Firecracker 10K was hosted by NYC Runs, a relatively new race organization that puts on a lot of races now…I have ran 2 other races by them, my December 10K which was the same course as this one, and my 5K PR race on May 5^th, and I think they do a really good job. The race is out on Roosevelt Island, which is in in the East River between Manhattan and Queens underneath the Queensboro/Ed Koch/59^th St Bridge (as many of the bridges and tunnels in NYC, the bridge is known by several names). There is a tram that goes between Manhattan and Roosevelt Island that is elevated and pretty cool. The course is also very flat overall, a few teeny tiny little bumps but nothing to write home about (163 elevation gain, 199 elevation loss). The island is tiny, and the race course does two full loops on the path around the perimeter of the island. There was also a 5K option with one loop, that went off a half hour before the 10K.

Temperature at the start, which was 9:00am, was 79 degrees with 79% humidity, and the temp and humidity were both due to rise throughout the race. GREAT. The only mercy was that it was pretty cloudy. I have been running in very hot and humid weather the past 2 weeks and have struggled with it a lot. My easy pace, which is generally in the ballpark of 11:30 minute miles, has been more like 13:00 minute miles. I think maybe I am just not heat adapted yet. But I was so determined to get my sub-60 I was going to do it no matter what.

Yeah…. Nope. I don’t know if I did something wrong, started out too fast, have just been running too many miles lately to manage a fast race (last week my weekly mileage was my all-time highest and for the past 4 weeks I have been following a 20 week fairly challenging half marathon plan for my first half in October) or what….but it just got harder and harder and harder to maintain a sub-60 pace. I had to get water at all 4 water stations…competitive me wanted to blow by but I just wanted water so badly and practical me knew that in the heat and humidity it was probably smart to. I took 2 each time and dumped one on my head and drank one. I was actually incredibly tempted to jump into the East River….. you KNOW it’s bad when the East River becomes the better alternative lol. Anyway….here are my pathetic splits, look at this perfect reverse progression, ugh:

Mile 1: 9:26

Mile 2: 9:52

Mile 3: 10:10

Mile 4: 10:26

Mile 5: 10:31

Mile 6: 10:35

My Garmin had some locating a satellite, even though I pressed the button to locate 4 minutes before the start, it didn’t locate in time. I finally got a signal .3 miles into the race and that is when I started it so my splits are off (I asked the woman running next to me with a Garmin what her distance was so I knew I needed to add .3 the whole time….anoying) and my Garmin measured 6.03 miles, meaning the course was probably a little long.

Official time: 1:05:16

Which is 14 seconds slower than my PR. Where I was basically limping for 3 miles. Fannnnnntastic. I can’t tell whether the heat and humidity really make it impossible to run fast, or if I am just a pansy and need to suck it up more. I can tell you it was pretty miserable and I could not push myself harder. Oh well…..the sub-60 continues to elude me.

One funny thing though....I must have looked fast or something because I crossed the finish for the first time at a clock time of something in the low 30s to make my second loop around the island, and the announcer called me out as the second place overall runner! HA! I had to scream out, "NO NO it's just my first lap!" Embarrassing, lol.

Anyway, the bright side is that my parents came in from Jersey with their new puppy to watch me race and spend the day with me afterwards. They are very supportive of my running and I absolutely love when they come see me run. It makes it really special. My dad has recently taken up running himself and considered running the 5K but is currently nursing a pulled calf, so he was happy to just watch me. Since Roosevelt Island is tiny, my parents got to see me several times along the course. Here are some pics they took:

Pre-Race:

Along the course:

Finish:

After the finish with my parents' new puppy Mia:

59th St Bridge from Roosevelt Island:

View of it from the tram:

My mom, Mia, and me in Manhattan after the race:

My dad and I at brunch (we didn't plan the matching hats):

And the race photographer got a few too:

This is my first loop around the island:

And this is my second...HA!

The photographer caught me saying hi to my parents:

And 2 at the finish:

Thanks for reading!

I love the skirt!

You should be really happy with that time, IMO. Conditions like that make a huuuuge difference, just imagine what you will run in more ideal conditions!

I would use that race as part of your speedwork and not worry about breaking sub-1 hour.  The weather is too hideous and you might get it, but you might not, and it will only frustate yourself.  Do the best that you can and see what happens, but plan a Fall 10K to finally break the 1 hour.

The heat and humidity really do slow you down.  I was gaining some good momentum on my pace and then.....heat and humidity.  My paces have slowed quit a bit from it.  You'll do it.

Sorry you did not get your sub-60, but only 14 seconds off your PR?  That is great!  Congrats on your race.  I would not feel too bad, the heat can really take a toll out of you.  If you don't get your sub-60 by the end of summer, I'm betting you are definitely going to get it in the cooler Fall weather.

The "bad" for you, I guess:  No sub-60.  The good:  You look strong in your photos...and you ALWAYS look good in them!

Sorry the race didn't go as you wanted.  Conditions the past couple weeks have been pretty awful, and I wouldn't expect anyone to be racing at their best, especially at longer races.  You can get away with a short race, but after 15-20 minutes the heat, combined with the body's inability to cool itself in high humidity, is going to take a toll.

Also, don't expect to hit your McMillan equivalencies for longer races right off the bat.  Aerobic fitness that lets you achieve equivalent performances from the short end of the distance scale to the long end takes a long time to develop-- I am still far from being able to achieve what I should in longer races based on my short-distance times.

I know that you aren't planning to, but if you can find a 10K in early September, about 3-5 weeks out from your goal half, I would go for it.  I find that doing a shorter-distance tuneup race before a longer distance race can be both a good workout and a good confidence booster.

Let me know if you ever need/want a pacer-- as long as the race is cheap and not too far, that is

Some days its just not going to be a goal/PR day.  Doesn't mean it's a failure at all.  Plus the longer the run, the more the heat will affect it.  Congratulations for hanging in there on this hot, humid day.  It's super neat that your parents came to watch (even bringing the puppy), and be so supportive of you.

Some days its just not going to be a goal/PR day.  Doesn't mean it's a failure at all.  Plus the longer the run, the more the heat will affect it.  Congratulations for hanging in there on this hot, humid day.  It's super neat that your parents came to watch (even bringing the puppy), and be so supportive of you.

+1.  Congrats.  Your outfit is cute!