Notes
Racing sick is stupid.
Held solid on first two miles. Official splits from the race were 6:08 and 6:18. Mile three, I started coughing up a lung. Every time I did, I lost my rhythm and had to fight to keep below 7:00. Which I did, but barely. It was ridiculous.
Held off the guy in 5th, though. Didn't have the wherewithal to chase the guy in 3rd (he was only ~7-15 secs ahead) like I should have due to the coughing. Mentally lost the battle. Couldn't put in the out-of-breath effort anymore with the coughing coming on. Gave up, thought about walking...
Still put in a solid kick at the end when I saw the clock gave me a chance at cracking 20, still, despite falling apart, coughing, etc.
Went to urgent care after the race: sinus infection plus strep. Whoops. Fever of around 103. Feel better about the performance.