I ran the Lilac 10K today. It's a great race, with a big field and runners ranging from international elites to recreational runners. One of the latter was wearing a t-shirt that said "I'm slow, I know, get over it." My 14-year old daughter, Electra, went with me to breakfast at 6:30 this morning, and then walked with me to the race.
I went out in about 7 minutes flat for the first mile. It took me almost 15 seconds to get to the start line, so officially, it was 7:15. The first mile was slightly uphill and very crowded. There's no system of staggering estimated finish times, so the racers were pretty well mixed; slow runners and fast runners as close to the start line as they wanted to be. I was not up with the elites, so I didn't see who was up there with them. Since I was expecting to be finishing in about 46:00, I started about midway back in the starting pack, figuring that would be about average, and I would be behind the fast people and in front of the slower ones.
I passed a lot of people during the first mile. In fact, I think I passed more in the first mile than in any other portion of the race. I zigged and zagged, jumping back and forth to get a good open lane in front of me.
The second mile started uphill, but only for a few hundred yards, then went into a long downhill. I continued passing people, but not as many as during the first mile. I didn't see the two-mile mark, so I have no idea what my 2-mile split was. The first water stop, which I skipped, was also in the second mile. I ran down the center of the road so as to avoid the slowing and stopping at the water tables, which were on both sides of the road.
It was during the third mile that my foot started giving me problems again. The pain was in the middle of my foot, right in the center of the arch. After just a few steps, it was gone and I was able to run normally. I got to the three mile point in 21:09 and the 5K a few seconds later. I accidentally cleared my watch (I'm still trying to operate it in the same way my old watch worked, and this one is very different), so I don't have any more of my splits.
The fourth mile turned into my neighborhood. The people of the neighborhood had a water table out and were cheering the runners on. I heard one small group call out "Go, daddy!" but it wasn't for me...yet.
The four mile point was right in front of my house. My wife and my son were standing in front of the house cheering for me. The had written "Go, Dad!" and "Go, Bren!" in chalk on the street. As I passed, I high-fived my son and wife. My four mile split was somewhere around 28:00, but I can't be sure.
After the four-mile point was where I fell apart. The fifth mile was a slight uphill, and it was there that I began to die. I don't remember my 5-mile split at all, and it's probably just as well, since I felt like that mile was my worst. I'm pretty sure that I ran the sixth mile faster than the fifth.
The announcer at the finish line called out my name and identified me as "Former McQuaid Star..." which is, I think, a bit of an exaggeration, but lifted me a bit. My overall time was around 45:00 and change. I checked my time and place on the official results, but didn't have anything to write with.
I know I was 39th in my age group, and 189th overall. Not bad for a first showing. My foot started giving me some trouble after the race was over, and walking back home was somewhat uncomfortable. I'll have to rest a few days, to see what the problem is, and how fast it will clear up.
I don't know what my next race will be, but I'm definitely going to try to race the Fairport Firecracker 5 on July 3rd.
Update: My time was 44:32. Better than the time of 46:00 I predicted some time ago.
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