Notes
Good race--so close to breaking 16. 2nd overall in a good field.
The first mile I got out solid, but had a tough time judging the pace. It was cld and we were headed into the wind. A high school runner with a pretty stride led for the first 1000m or so, then as he faded I took the lead and tried to keep the heat on. My legs felt good after the initial surge of lactic.
Through the mile in 5:05, which was pretty much perfect. Just past the mile I felt someone coming up behind me, which is always a bit nerve-racking, and it was a Kenyan runner who either started slow or even late--I didn't see him at the starting line. He put about 5 seconds on me in this mile. We split 10:10--another 5:05, and I was feeling good. I thought I had a 15:45 run in me.
The last mile, I kept working on the Kenyan, but I am frustrated that I didn't make a move to close the gap. He basically ran 5-7 seconds in front of me, and I was too intimidated to get up on his shoulder. We were running hard, so it was a shock to see 15:30 at the 3 mile. I think that probably the 2 mile marker was misplaced so these two miles were more like 5:12-5:13 than 5:05-5:20. No way it was a 5:20.
Anyways, I kicked hard, but couldn't quite nip 16:00. Overall, I am pleased. My legs really felt good as did my breathing. The hard part was simply maintaining the rhythm of the turnover. That's a good sign. I can go faster.