Parents, a princess and a pirate

15 k training run - near perfect run!!

I wasn't sure how today was going to go, since I had the flu last week and still had some head congestion. But I also had a really strong tempo run on Thursday so I felt confident that I could do well. I had run this race last year and finished with a 1:14 time but had some stomach issues (puked twice) and dressed too warmly. So this year I just wanted to improve in those aspects and keep my time under 1:16.
I was lucky enough to have some friends join me - Brett, Lynk and Nancy were all running as well as my Spark People friends John and his wife Rhonda. The weather was perfect, 40 degrees to start, sunny and dry. We started in the middle of the pack so there was a huge crowd in front of us. Suddenly, they waved the green flag and we were off.
Brett and John took off together right away while I said "Bye, good luck" to Rhonda and started weaving around the walkers and slower runners. I knew there was a decent little downhill at about 1/2 mile in and I wanted to take advantage of that to catch some speed. But the crowd was too tight, so I hopped up on the sidewalk and kicked it into gear. I hit the first mile marker with a time of 8:24 - whoa, gonna have to pick it up to make my time.
Miles 2-3 went well, the crowd thinned out and I picked up some speed. I took 3 Chomps at mile 4, right before a water station. I started feeling warm about mile 5. I was wearing a long-sleeved tech tee with a short sleeved tee over top of it. I knew I wanted to shed the s/s one but my bib was pinned to it. Drat. Well, rather then stop to undo it, take off my shirt, re-pin my bib to the l/s shirt, I just decided to do all that while running! I did prick my finger on the safety pin but managed to lose that layer (tucked it into the back of my shorts) while keeping a 8:07 pace! Hope blood comes out of tech shirts though....
Mile 6-7 went very smoothly, still maintaining good pace. I started to pick someone in the crowd in front of me and pass them, one at a time. At one point, about mile 7, I had picked a tall guy in a light blue shirt. As soon as I caught up to him, he saw me. Guess he didn't want to get "chicked" (running term for being passed by a girl) because he straightened his shoulders and picked up the pace. LOL, hopefully that helped him get back on pace because I didn't see him again. Took another set of Chomps at mile 7.
At this point my legs and lungs are still feeling really good and I know that I'm going to finish strong. There is a nice downhill at mile 8 so I pick up a little speed there too. The crowd is really spread out at this point but I continue to find someone and pick them off, one at a time. I see the mile marker for #9 and the gun time was 1:14 (my actually time was about :60 less). With 3/10th left, I knew I wouldn't break 1:14 but would be under 1:16. I pick up the pace, wanting to finish strong. I come around the corner, see the finish line and see a guy about 10 yards in front of me. I decided right then that I was going to pass him so I sprint to the end!! I hear Brett and John cheering me on as I cross the finish line with a time of 1:15:32, a 8:07 per mile pace. Woo-hoo!
I stretched out and chatted with the guys about their run. They had actually ran the whole way together, something new for them both. I think Brett helped John reach a new PR, at least that's what John said. Rhonda finished strong as well, just under her goal time.

Funny side note - Lynk and Nancy were running late. He dropped her off at the starting line while he parked the car. He was literally the last person to cross the start line and had to sprint to catch up with the sag wagon! He was never passed and ran a strong race, even after sprinting over a 1/2 mile!

So, it was a great race. I think I could have hung on to that pace for another 4 miles or so, which would have been a half. Guess we'll see on May 8th!