Notes
Chapman called me and changed his mind about letting me race. He said I could do a 3k, which isn't a 5k, but any opportunity is better than no opportunity. So I dropped everything and hurried back to Waverly! I felt a little rushed and disorganized, but I try and be prepared for a race at every and any time because racing is always on my mind. The vibes all day were very mixed, some people super happy, other people in tears, just a whole lotta feelings all around. I think I was just happy to be there. Anyway, the race itself was okay. There wasn't really a race plan (or if there was, I didn't really know about it) but I figured I might as well try my best to stay up front because it's better to try and fail than never try at all. The race got out H-O-T hot, which I should've been prepared for but apparently was not lol. It was beyoooooond congested up front and I was boxed in pretty good. I was getting tripped, elbowed, pushed, and every other physical verb that exists. I felt like I was moving my legs as fast as possible but it wasn't fast enough to keep up with the head group. So then it was me and Caroline McMartin, who I tried my best to beat but she got me at the end. I do not understand how I can run a 10:25 3k within a 5k and it feels like a piece of cake, yet I run a 10:23 in an actual 3k with it feeling like a total grindfest. I felt like I was mentally tough and believed in myself, so I don't really know where I went wrong, but I guess I should've just positioned myself better at the beginning so I could be more with the front pack. Chapman said I'm a total grinder but I just have to keep working on my form, and that the shorter/faster the distance is, the sooner my form gets worse. I guess I just wasn't built to run these shorter distances. Overall, I wasn't super thrilled with how this went but I still PR'd and am walking away from indoor slightly more content than I was last weekend. I am happy that I got another opportunity to race and am hoping for a good couple of next weeks to bring my confidence back up a little more.