Notes
A return to the Return of the Turkey Trot. No Rebel to race with this year, nor really anyone near Drew and my age. So I got out at my own pace with the lead group not too far ahead. I stayed in the same spot the whole first mile, feeling uneasy but alright at 5:35.
The young guys ahead of me weren't quite as reckless as in some races, so they didn't start fading until mile 2. I felt good and passed 3 or 4 guys to get into 3rd while still running the same mile split as mile 1. It felt like I was gaining well on 2nd and maybe even Drew in 1st, but the 180 turnaround at halfway really slowed my momentum. I'm sure it hurt everyone but there was now strain in my legs and just enough time to get back up to speed when a short/steep uphill took all that momentum away.
My 3rd mile was 5:40 as I tried to get things back under control. It wasn't until we joined up with the 5kers at 3.5 that adrenaline and pride got my mojo back. Even though running with/past the 5kers was a complete mess and I narrowly missed hitting some kids, I was back to running smooth and passed 2nd place about mile 4 (5:30).
I thought I still had a chance at Drew who was about 20sec ahead. But that was really dependent on Drew falling apart and he didn't. Another 5:30 to finish.
So slightly slower pace than last year (on a different course but supposedly the same elevation gain/drop). Perhaps still just shy of 5 miles. I'm at a much different place in my training though and happy with where I'm at. It also wasn't nearly as much of a battle as last year since I ran my own pace instead of matching others and I didn't have to kick hard past someone.