Notes
Hingham 4th of July race - moved the start around the corner this year, shortening the race from 4.6 to 4.47. Wasn't feeling optimistic coming into the race. Legs hadn't felt good in a workout in a while, and race 2 weeks ago was poor. Felt like I was losing some of the marathon fitness I had built up. Training hadn't been what I wanted after Adam was born either. To top it off, played softball Thursday night and used sprinting muscles that have been long forgotten. So was a little sore as well.
Happily, the legs were there for me after all, and I had no problems with a late race fade, so the fitness must still be OK as well. First mile felt relatively easy and relaxed, and right on pace. Was thinking 5:40ish if things went well. Continued on at roughly the same pace feeling good through 3. Started to feel a little tired over the first part of mile 4, but saw the pace start to drop, so picked it up again, which ended up feeling good. Pushed pretty hard over the last mile, which felt great, caught 2 guys that had a decent lead on me, and out kicked them in the final 400 or so. Turns out they were #2 and 3 in my AG, so it was a worthwhile kick. Pace over the last 1/2 mile was 4:57 according to Garmin.
Overall, very pleased with the race. If I extrapolate this time out to 4.6 miles, it would be 25:30-25:40. Last year was 26:14ish, so big improvement. Would have been a PR on this course.