Notes
Great opening leg for Mill Cities! Exactly what I wanted / expected. I planned on going out at 5:30 - 5:35, then grinding away at 5:30 after that. But at the start, I held back to let the rest of the field shake out. Two people went right out to the front and I eased my way onto their shoulder. I stayed right behind them so that I could be in the lead pack yet not make a move too early. Better to see how they race and let them do the work. It felt like a quite comfortable pace.
It certainly made my run a lot easier. All I had to do was sit on them. First mile was a little fast but I figured it'd be better to stay with the leaders than to let a gap form and run slower. Continued the pace through the 2nd and 3rd mile. But once we hit that third mile, I started to fade.
I think part of that was I heard them talking before the race, and they said they wanted to take the first 3 miles easier. So they probably sped up a bit at that point. But I could also feel myself fading. Apparently not too much, because I still managed a 5:31 fourth mile, but the 5th mile was 10 seconds slower. Managed to regain the pace and hit 5:26 pace for the last 0.6 miles. But overall, that last 2.6 miles felt very similar to the last 2 miles of Feaster. I did not have much strength left and was just hanging on the best I could. As I said about Feaster, I think it indicates I need more endurance. I've experienced the same in early comeback races of the past, and I am only in the 40s for mileage still. Glad I was able to hang on like I did, but I am really looking forward to have the base endurance to handle these races much better.