Notes
Ran this race with Travis as my last race of the "season" before summer base building.
I had picked this race because I thought I stood a better chance of a PR on this course, which is considerably flatter than the DATCU Dash (in my neighborhood) and also USATF certified.
Event: This race was pretty well organized, especially for the relatively small turnout. There were only about 300 actual timed race participants, although they were claiming 1,000+, probably including walkers and no-shows. Usually at a 5k where organizers spent this much money (live band, lots of activities, good facilities), I would expect to see more like 1000 runners. It could be the warmer temps kept more runners from showing?
Course: The course was a little hillier than the Sprint for Cancer course, and also had a lot more turns and curves, but it was not a difficult course at all. More shade would have been nice, and I could do without the hard 180-degree turnaround.
Goals: my stretch goal was to go sub-20, but I knew everything would have to line up just right for that, so the 75 degree temp and not-perfectly-flat course convinced me that wasn't likely at all. My main goal was to at least run the first two miles aggressively and burn out in the 3rd mile if I had to. Also, finding out what a similar-to-PR effort and similar-to-PR fitness could amount to in hotter conditions was a goal.
Race: I started out right up front, but of course a bunch of people sprinted out ahead for about the first half-mile. I could tell by halfway through the first mile that it probably wouldn't be a PR day. The first mile was into a very slight wind and I could tell the warmth and direct sunlight was making me exert just a little bit too much effort. I had hoped to run my first two miles aggressively (6:35, 6:30), but I only managed a 6:44 first mile on a downhill.
Just after mile 1 after topping a hill and coming down the other side, I saw my lap pace so far was about 7:00, so I knew the hill had eaten away at my energy. From this point on, I didn't pay attention to my watch much, I just raced the other runners I could see. I caught two guys near the end of mile 2 and then focused on running the tangents.
In the beginning of the third mile, I gradually passed two more guys and I could hear the first guy I had passed trying to catch back up to me. I was also gradually catching one of the leading females, and after I started passing her, I could hear her friends yelling at her to push really hard. I passed one more male at about 2.9 miles who slowed way down and exclaimed he thought the mile 6 10k marker was the end of the race. Sucker! There was a short, but not gradual incline after that during which I could hear the female trying to surge, but she gave up about halfway up. From there, I was alone to the end.
I finished 2nd overall, but the winner was more than a minute ahead of me.
Official time: 20:36
2nd overall, 2nd male, and 1st in my AG.