Notes
Temp 34 (21) Wind 13 mph.
Two weeks between base phase and formal 8-week 50K training plan. Will run as fitness test to see where training paces will need to be going forward. Was 20:05 on New Years Day with better conditions. Not done anything specific to improve on that. Stronger, but about 4-5 pounds heavier than normal race weight from extra lifting. Expect to be about 20:00. If I'm slower than 20:30, I'm in trouble getting to where I need to be come April.
Running the course backwards? Heard different reasons. Wind? No worse than in some other years. Change for the heck of it? Its a loop, so what. Done this one enough to know: 3.1 miles down the center of the street or stay on the inside and straighten out the "S" curve on Capshaw to save yourself 0.02 or 0.03.
Over 200 this year. AJ (who is thinking mid-18s) on front row with an few young adults and the entire Chaffee Class of 2021. I line up next to JW who is "doing this as 6:30 pace tempo one week before Little Rock".
Expected cluster-eff start. Started to go around two older teenagers running shoulder to shoulder, but instead split them by physically shoving both of them out of my way. Make first turn at 0.15 mark and starting to thin out. See that I am in 9th OA position. Go ahead and pass the next two, pull up to JW, and strike up a conversation. We move ahead and turn on South Main. Ask him about the two I don't know in front of us. He did not know them either. Feeling really good and have some pop in my hop with the tailwind. Tell him I think I'll try to pick off as many as I can. He says we went though first mile split at 6:25. Took his word for it, bid him farewell, and picked it up.
Catch the first a little ways past Yoakum. At this point, looks like that will be the only one I get. Right onto Capshaw, into the headwind, and kid in number four position does not deal with it too well. He was running with number three (Marcus L.) and he starts to fade. Second Street, then second dose of direct headwind on Heeb. Inching up as we turn onto 3rd Street. Thinking I'll coast up and draft him after we turn again at St. Ambrose before trying to take him as soon as we take the last turn onto 5th Street.
He doesn't made it two full blocks into the third hit of headwind. Go ahead and go around. Closed some on Marcus, but looks like I'll need this to be a 3.5 mile race to run him down. Chip a couple more seconds away, but run out of course. Cross with 19:40 on the clock (couldn't get my watch stopped, then accidently hit lap button). Anyways, had 3.09 Garmin distance and 6:23 average pace with the added few seconds. No splits as I forgot to set my auto-lap. Per JW 6:25 first mile and per Garmin 6:23 overall. As much as I need to know. Was 4th OA. Think I won AG by a couple of hours...
Pretty dang happy about this one. Fast enough for a 55 year old off base work, and strong as an ox start to finish. Was nice to have some rabbits to chase.