Notes
Goals are set for the race. Nice day for it. Overcast and 45 for starters. Should be near 50 when we start.
1:07 at the top of the 1st hill, 1:54-58 at the corner of Van Buren and 3:17 at the half mile mark (2nd ave). Here we go. Feeling good.
Got there early and noticed they changed the start of the route compared to the map. So I went into the school and figured out new times for my set places for a 6:35 pace. Great day for a run. 50 & overcast. Jim T, Megan S, Eric T, and some other runners I see at local races were there, but I didn't see many top 5K runners to start off. Nice having my own facilities to stretch and warm-up. I took a warm-up mile or so and in the process I jogged up the final hill. Didn't seem all that bad. I figured I would be fine hitting it at the end of the race.
Good start and and I was among a host of kids (crowd of about 250-300) to start, but quickly became Nathan H., a woman who looked like she was going too fast and myself after about a first quarter mile. Soon after came "the leader" and two high school kids whizzing by and I figured we were about 6:30 and the guy informed me it was 6:20 so I eased up a bit. Hit the half mile mark just about right on. The woman drifted back and I settled in 5th behind the leader, Nathan, and the two HS kids. They were in a pack of four a good 20-30yards ahead of me and I hit the mile mark right at 6:35 and felt solid. Decided to pick it up knowing I had at least 10 seconds to make up.
Just before the turnaround, one of the HS kids started fading and I eventually passed him before the turnaround. Hit the turnaround area about 10:07. It wasn't a point, it was a half a block in one alleyway and out another alleyway and back on to the street again. So I'm guessing on the 10:07, it might have actually been more like 10:10-15. In anycase, there were no mile markers after that and I decided to keep behind the now 3 leaders on the way back. They started to separate with about a mile to go. I decided to pick it up a little and felt fine, but didn't want to go too fast so I didn't push too much. I approached the final half mile at about 16:45. Had to run 3:14 and then remembered the finish was actually past the start line by about a block, so even faster! I was gaining on Nathan H and Brad S (HS kid), but the leader was definitely out of range at this point. The final stretch has the hill and I as I started up it didn't seem bad at all and I started to kick it in and didn't look at my watch so I had no idea where i was. Got to the top and let it fly for the final 2 blocks, passed Nathan H and caught up to Brad and in the last 10 yards he heard me and he held me off. As we turned the short corner to cross the finish line I was devastated to see 20:0?
I had way too much left, but to my credit, Nathan H had decided to go with the leaders early in the race and I had enough to overtake him at the end. He told me after the race he wished he had taken my pace.
There were a lot of activities following the race and they were typing in the results. It was taking forever for the results and they wouldn't post anything or tell you anything. About an hour and after the race I decided to leave because we had baseball to play in Burlington. I didn't find out the winner's age, so I figure I was either 1st or 2nd in my age group. If it is the same winner from last year, he was in the 30-39 age division. 2nd place was 9th grade student.
20:10 (unofficially), 6:30 pace. 3/250 overall and 1st or 2nd in the 40-49 division.
20:12 officially, 6:30pace. 1st in my age group. 3rd overall. 24 seconds behind the winner, Dave M, at 19:48.
What did I learn? Gotta kick it in earlier. The 6:30-35 pace is probably perfect for the first mile, but the 2nd I need to push more and the last mile I have to push myself the entire mile. Can't wait until the end. There is a flat race in Oskaloosa I ran last year and believe that is the one I need to do. It is in 3 weeks (April 30). Too soon? I don't think so. Today felt like a speed workout.