MM #6177
When I first signed up for the Ragnar relay last winter, I had yet to run any races (aside from that one lousy 5k from a couple years back). So when I was asked to put in my 10k time for the team's estimated pace, I had no idea what to put. I ended up putting in a pace based on averaging the last couple months' 6-mile training runs, and figured 9:30 would be safe. Now my team captain is emailing me, saying she's heard I've gotten faster, but I still don't know how to give her an accurate answer. See, the team would be issued a penalty if we come in substantially faster than estimated.
So.... here are all my races. What should I put down for my 10k pace??
5/26/08: 5k = 31:16 (10:04)
1/1/11: 5k = 27:26 (8:50)
4/3/11: HM = 2:05:14 (9:33)
4/9/11: 5k = 26:48 (8:38)
4/30/11: 15k = 1:22:39 (8:52)
who says life doesn't have a soundtrack?
Bad faerie
You should sandbag.
Totally.
No kidding.
Under no circumstances should you promise better than 9:30. Nor should you run your first two legs much faster than that anyway. Drop the hammer on the last one if you still have some sproink in you.
The whole penalty thing isn't that big a deal at the scale you're worrying about. Teams do what they do and as along as your captain isn't outrageously out of line (and there are eleven other people factoring into this), it doesn't really matter. Ragnar is trying to keep people from turning up hours before exchanges open or after they close.
Don't go killing yourself. Plan conservatively. Remember that this is a party on wheels except for you have to get out and run from time to time.
Blogjoy
Yeah, what Sal said. But then again... what'd you put down originally? As for what you'll probably run, I bet 8:50's to 9's, really. But you don't need to advertise that. After all, Mustang Sally sandbagged with the whole "I'm the slowest one in the van!!" and she sure didn't run like that!
I put down 9:30, and that's what the captain questioned. So I hesitantly told her she could change it to 9:00. But I'd never put money on that.
..yep, I was fixing to put that....
..nothing takes the place of persistence.....
I usually put down my HM pace (8:40-8:50) for these as that is what I end up averaging. It's tough to run 3 10K's in 24 hours, unless your legs are short/easy. Pretty much everyone ends up sandbagging, you don't want to put down a faster pace and get a later start and end up lonely at the back of all the race, it gets lonely and scary at night especially if not many teams are behind you.
Well, I just heard back from her and she's changing me to 9:00. My legs are relatively short (the ones I'm running, as well as the ones I run with, ha), only 13.1 miles in total for the entire relay. And based on my last couple races, I really only have one pace, regardless of distance. Whatever.
And oh look, there's rain forecasted for Friday night next week. Lovely.
I was still the slowest one in the van.
But this was a van with the likes of Perch and dAAve and mcsolar99 and EriKa and Sans Souci in it, so I didn't have a chance.
You know I ran an interval set yesterday that included 200s all out and they were still slower than Matt and Dave go when they're racing the mile?
*sigh*
Oh, this is about OM, not me.
Be kind to yourself, lass. Don't let race adrenaline or pushy captains nudge you into running those early legs too fast.
I'd much prefer it to be about you.
You could plug those april races into the Mcmillan pace calculator and see what that says. Google mcmillan pace calculator.
8:34 pace for a 10K based on your recent 15K time.
But then I'd plan conservative like others have said.
Turns out this penalty thing is new, as of this year. Just got back from a team meeting and got the whole scoop. Seems that we're OK if we run lower than projected, but faster is a no-no. In theory, if every team member were to run a minute faster than his/her projected pace, that could put a team ahead by three hours, thereby incurring a penalty. The team would also get held at an exchange for a couple of hours if that happened, kind of a bummer as well. But our team captain figured out +/- all our paces by a minute, and at most we'd be ahead was an hour and a half. Maybe this is only a Ragnar New York thing, I don't know. One of our teammates did this same relay two years ago and she said there was no such rule then. Live and learn, I guess.
Ev, I've looked at the McMillan charts based on both my 5k and 15k races. Both give me numbers that make no sense in my body. Either the 15k was a total fluke or I really only have one pace.
Thanks for your input, everyone.
Turns out I ran an 8:25 pace for yesterday's 10k race. Who knew? Regardless, my pace for the relay will be 9:00.
Nice work!
Beginner all over again
Did you plug those times into McMillan Calculator?
That might give you some ideas
#artbydmcbride
I vote 8:50
Runners run