Notes
I wasn't sure what to expect so going into a race without clear goals is never a good idea. My two 5Ks from last year were run in 25:09 (this exact race) and a 22:16 in March '08 so I was expecting to run much faster than both of those two efforts. Somewhat mitigating my training over the past year was the fact that the race was run over packed snow/ice that was impossible to remove given the temps of the past few weeks and although that's a rather lame excuse the 2nd mile was very difficult running through the zoo parking lot.
Overall a disappointing beginning to 2009 but I'm not exactly sure what I expected so I have that ignorance working for me. My first mile in 7:02 seemed strong but I remember thinking I was working too hard for that pace and the slipping and sliding was taking its toll mentally. My warmup was also not satisfying.
This also marked my wife's first 5K ever and it was a great thrill to have her along.