It was Saturday morning and I decided that I would race a 5k. This always seems like a good idea during the week. Then, when I wake up on race day, I say, "this sucks, I don't want to run fast today." I was running the Wilson Partner's in Education 5k at Wilson High School. This race was important to me because it was my first comeback race in 2009. Obviously, I'd be doing much better this time around.
I got there very early. I was one of the first to register for the day. It was relatively cool, but it is still summer. I warmed up in a shirt. I got there early to run the entire course. I needed miles and I wanted to become familiar with it.
The course was well marked. I took it easy. The first half mile wasn't tough. Then, I got to a long and gradual hill. I forgot that this course was challenging. I was glad to get up this hill, near Easton Hospital.
I didn't push at all, but the miles did get progressively faster. I've put in a ton of miles this week and the legs were feeling it. They weren't sharp at all. I kept going though and they at least did loosen up a bit.
The 2nd mile of the route was much nicer and I knew that it would be faster. The 3rd mile was in between the first two. It was easier than the first, but harder than the second. I finished my warmup at 3 miles, at the stadium track. As I was walking around the track, I saw my friend Megan warming up.
I probably did start the warm up earlier than I should've. I had almost a half hour between the end of it and the race. I did some strides to keep loose. The legs felt much better on the track.
I lined up around the 2nd row in the race. There were a bunch of high school and college runners in the front. I let them go early, so that I didn't run too fast. I was behind Megan for a bit.
Even though the first half mile was good, I knew to save something for the hill. Before the hill, my pace was 6:02. That was odd, because it felt harder than my 5:40 opening mile 2 weeks ago. I was holding back and still struggling.
I had passed Megan, but she put the hammer down on the uphill and passed me back. It was good to pace off of her though. I also battled with a guy in my age group. During the race, I thought he was another high school kid.
I came through the first mile at 6:16. Since I ran well on pavement 2 weeks ago, I was hoping for better than that. Of course, this route was difficult. That surely didn't help.
I had got by Megan again on the flatter part of the course or the next smaller uphill. I don't remember. I passed the guy in my age group then too. He flew past me once we went downhill though. I couldn't stay with him either.
We crossed the road and ran through the other neighborhood. By 1.5 miles, I was struggling and stuck running alone. I tried to just be consistent and smart. I didn't want to push too hard or I'd really fall off. With all the flat and downhill, mile 2 was a 6:00.
The 3rd mile was a struggle. There was some uphill and I was getting a side stitch. At the road crossings, I could tell I had a gap on whoever was behind me. I guess it was Megan at that point. She was winning the women's race.
I was slowly catching some of the young guys in front of me. They were falling off as we got to the high school. Before long, I was on the track and on their heels. They saw me and picked it up. I had almost run the wrong way on the track, because they had us go the opposite way of normal. At least that meant only 3/4 of a lap left.
As I rounded the last turn, I could see the clock on the scoreboard. I knew I'd be super close to breaking 19 minutes. I pushed and pushed, but it wasn't enough. I came in at 19:00. It would've been nice to be one second faster.
I wasn't that happy, but I can't say I was too disappointed either. I ran hard and got a good workout. I finished 2nd in my age group. I thought maybe I could run faster, but definitely not on this challenging course. It wasn't too hot, but hot enough to have some impact. My legs were beat too. I do wonder what I could run on a flatter course, in cooler weather and with fresh legs. Maybe in the fall I'll find out.
After the run, I ran my cool down with Megan. We went through town and ran over 2 miles total. It was nice to talk about training and such. The pace was decent too.
Since I was looking for 90 miles for the week, I needed another run. The plan was 5 more easy miles. It didn't quite workout that way.
I decided to head to the Saucon Rail Trail. I knew of a trailhead on Reading Drive, but I didn't quite know how to get there. I found it though. I wanted to run there because it was in the middle of the trail and I could go out and back each direction. There weren't too many road crossings in that area either.
I started off heading what I guess would be considered south. Two women ran by earlier. I made it a game to catch them, even though I felt awful. The legs were beat and I had to break them in. Eventually, I was able to get them going.
I caught the first woman first, as she was slower than the other one. I blew by both of them with a sub 8 minute mile. There were a lot of people out, either walking, biking or running. It was nice to feed off of people.
I continued to run solid and watched the pace get faster. I crossed one road and kept getting out slightly farther. Finally, at 1.85 miles, I turned around.
There was a young girl that was about a quarter mile ahead of me. She wasn't that fast, but was running at a decent pace. It took time to close the gap. I was happy to make it through mile 2. I pushed more and more to catch the girl, but she stopped right before a road crossing.
With that rabbit, I ran a 6:46 mile 3. I was happy with that and feeling good now. The only thing I didn't enjoy is how loose the stone trail felt in spots. That was especially true in the township's newer section. I ran past my car's parking lot at 3.7 miles.
I thought about the fact that I was approaching 89 miles for the week. I hit that a little past my car with a 6:55 mile. I got a little faster after that, as I went downhill. I wasn't going too hard yet though. It was more like a moderate pace. It was good running anyway.
I took my watch off in the final mile. I turned around at 4.45 miles, right before some walkers. I had another lady to chase and again, I really pushed it. I caught and passed her fairly quickly.
I was going so fast in the final mile that I ended up passing some bikers. I was glad that they got out of my way. I really pushed in the last half mile and ended with a 6:34 mile. Not a bad way to end the week.
I was thrilled to be done with my 90 mile week. It was my first ever. I hope to do many more. I don't feel too bad, but I am a little slow and beat up.
My last really challenging week before the marathon, starts tomorrow. I want at least 80 miles, but I'd love to hit 90 again. That would be a solid way to start the taper. Tomorrow, I'll likely run 22 or 23 miles at Eddyside with Mertz in the morning. That will be a good way to kick off the week.
Warm up 3 miles - 23:46 (7:55 pace)
Race 3.09 miles - 19:00 (6:09 pace)
Cool down 2.17 miles - 16:33 (7:38 pace)
Afternoon Run 5 miles - 35:13 (7:02 pace)
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