Notes
Brissman-Lundeen 8k
The only/last time this season I'll have a chance to run a fast/flat course since the rest will be very hilly. So, I really wanted to make the most of this. Pre-race wise, everything went well. Stomach was fine, had a good lunch, stayed hydrated, and got some good rest the day of. Got to relax a lot as well before the race. Warmup felt little more tiring than usual, most likely the weather. LIttle upset that Augustana was much hotter than the previous years, so this time, the goal was more about position than time really. Also, since the race got separated into two championships, the t shirts were given out for the Top 20 in each section, making it a lot more competitive now. Given the heat and considering how I performed in Nationals last year and EIU this season, I decided to go out more conservatively and not try to go with the front pack too early in the race.
Race goes off and the teammates I usually run with: Frintner, William, Auburn, Josh, and Jared, went off near the front, but I stayed back with a few other teammates: Alan and Gerkin. Tried to stay relaxed for the first 2 miles and keep my effort and pace consistent. This worked really well to my advantage because after the first mile, I just started to slowly pick off racers who went out too hard. At this point, I was roughly 80m from my teammates and about 100m from the front quarter of the racers. After mile 2, I caught up to the rest of my teammates and tried to get them to go with me, but no one seemed to have responded, so I kept moving up. 3rd mile, I started to feel tired very quickly and felt a little pukey as well. Still moved up pretty well and I think I was about 40th at this point. Near the 4th mile though, I was completely gassed. So, at this point, I just tried to hang on with the group in front of me. William caught up to me at this point and tried to get me to go with him, but I just had no response. Pretty much tried to just hang in there. Honestly, had no kick and got passed badly in the last 100m. Puked a lot after the race.
Positives: Ran really smart the first half of the race and picked off people well. Raced a fast time despite very hot weather. Managed to stay tough despite dying badly near the end. Official PR by like 0.1 seconds, although unofficially, I was off.
Negatives: Still was badly gassed despite going out conservatively and still had chest problems despite using my inhaler and staying hydrated. I'm really hoping it's from the heat. Finish was poor.
Overall: I'm happy with the decisions I made the first half of the race and wish I was much tougher the second half. I think that's mostly just a mentality thing and something I need to work on a lot. Also, my legs were super heavy at the fourth mile mark, probably from a huge buildup of lactic acid. Raced pretty well despite getting some really shitty sleep the last few days. I definitely need to be much tougher because if this is how I feel running on a flat golf course, I'm in for a rough time at Hershey.