Good race.  Bad performance.

Temperature about the same as for last week's 5k. (70s) Humidity a little higher. (Also 70s.) Based on last week's 27 minute 5k, I thought 56 minutes might be about right, so I set it as a realistic goal with 55 minutes as a ceiling goal and 57 minutes as the floor. Man, was I fooled! I ran 58:04 on the clock, 57:59 net time.

Nice course. Out and back with the turn‑around at exactly 5k. However, the course was deceptive. Mostly flat, but not really flat almost anywhere, if you know what I mean. It was gently rolling with few truly flat segments. A few of the hills were moderately challenging. It started on a 5‑lane wide street for the first mile. Plenty of room for the field of several hundred to spread out. Miles 2‑5 were on the B&A Trail.

I made an old mistake that I used to always make during the summer in my first running life. I ran the first mile too fast for the conditions. After the first 5k, I knew I wasn't going to have a very good race, so I eased the pace a little and finished it as a tempo run. After all, marathon training starts tomorrow. J

My splits were 8:54, 9:02, 9:26, 9:22, 10:10, 9:26, 1:40. The first 5k was 28:25 and the second was 29:34. I was just a bit encouraged that I could pull out a strong finish. The 1:40 for the last 2/10 mile is an 8:20 pace.....but it was mostly downhill.  J

I gained a little consolation in that two other guys I know, including one guy who ran a 19:06 5k last week, had hoped for 40 minutes today and got 43. So maybe it really was the conditions and not just me. Of my 151 races, I can count the number of my really good summer races on one hand.....and this wasn't one of them. If not for training purposes, I wouldn't race from June through September. I just don't run summer races well. Never could. Never will. Oh well, at least I got a good speed workout today. At my current state of under‑development, every little bit helps. J

On the positive side, I got to see MikeB1 again today. And, I met another Forum family member for the first time......Elliott, who posts mostly on the Competitive Forum. Yep. He's fast. He's also a heck of a nice guy. He was very kind to meet me at the finish line even though he had finished 14 minutes ahead of me.

Didn't win a random prize.......again. And, there were a couple of good ones, including a bike. No pastries and chocolate cake this time, but there was a choice of fruit, egg and sausage breakfast, bagels, juices, sodas, beer and ice cream.

Another reminder of how much work I have to do this summer and fall to get closer to where I want to be. Another disappointing race.....not surprising during the summer.  But, another enjoyable race morning. All things considered, it was a nice way to kick off Father's day!

Jim2

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