3/17/07: Lookin’ Good 10k Race Report!

I really felt good about the effort I put into this race. I ran confidently throughout, and hardly felt tired or ‘slow.’ And I was able to finish in my sub-9:00 goal per mile that I set for myself! What a great feeling!

The race field itself was on the low side-think Bellaire Trolley numbers. I think there were maybe 300 runners in both the 5k and 10k. The 10k course was just two loops of the 5k. At first, I really wasn’t looking forward to the two loops, but as I ran the first loop, I memorized where the mile markers were for the second loop. This really helped me on the second loop and gave me confidence to pass people as part of my running ‘game plan.’

I ran really strong throughout and there were about 4-5 separate times in the race where I felt like my ‘old self’ again, and my running felt fast, effortless, and strong. It was such a good feeling. I think as I continue to get back in pre-marathon shape, this feeling is likely to come back more. Plus, not being injured is a really really good feeling.

Post-race, I enjoyed a green beer (nothing says hard-core St. Patty’s partying like green beer at 8:30 in the morning!) and hung out with the Strider clan of Pony and John Yoder, Peter Prescott, Andrew and I think I saw Fred Miller too. We all enjoyed the wonderful early Saturday morning and another great day of racing in Houston!

The Stats:
6.2 miles

53:55 watch time (no chip timing)
Ave 8:40/mile :)

8:44, 8:51, 8:41,
8:51, 8:35, 8:26, 1:43

Weather: mid 60’s. low humidity.
Heartrate: 180 ave. 212 max.