Whale of a Run - 7/28/12

July 28, 2012

Going in reverse order, it's time to report on two short races I ran in one day.

First, Whale of a Run 4 miler.  I hadn't planned on running this as I was already signed up for a race in the evening. Jeff was signed up for the evening race but found out he had to work the weekend.  I contacted a friend and asked if she wanted to run with his bib and after some ice cream bribery, Beverly agreed.  She was running a race in the morning in Silverdale and egged me on to run it as well.  I've done this race but have missed it sporadically due to soccer tournaments falling on the same day.  Since Jessica is injured, that wasn't an issue this year.

I arrived at the registration tables race morning 45 minutes before the start and quickly was signed up, used the porta-potty and had time to run back to my vehicle before the start.  After the Ragnar Relay the weekend before, I had been taking it easy with my running and sleeping A LOT!  Running fast sounded difficult!

The first mile is flat and open, easily separating runners before we turn a corner and face the only hill on the course.  And this hill is a doozy when you're trying to run fast.  6:55 first mile and I felt pretty good.

Road construction forced us to run on dirt as we began the second mile, a slow incline before the steeper section that isn't terribly long.  If you don't know this course, it's intimidating and hard to know how to pace yourself.  I knew that once I rounded the corner, it leveled out and was a good time to recover but not let myself fall too far behind. I was elated to see a 7:44 second mile.  Sure, I wish it was faster but for a hilly mile, it was good for me.  The goal for mile 3 was to get my rhythm back and start looking for targets.  Running targets.  I passed a few runners along this stretch and felt like I had some life in my legs.

Mile 4 is flat and downhill, perfect for me!  That's where I can make up time from my slow uphill times.  I focused on quick feet and pulling in runners in front of me. With half a mile to go, I passed a group of 3 guys and just as we rounded the corner to the last straightaway, one of them surged past me and outkicked me at the finish.  It's all good. Pretty sure he's not in my age group or gender :)

A 6:14 for mile 4 put a big smile on my face and even though I think I've run this course in a faster time, this girl was pretty happy to have finished under a 7 minute average and even squeezed out a low 6 minute mile.  Not bad for a 40 something mom.

First in my age group and I think I was 7th overall.

Split	Time	Distance	Avg Pace
Summary	27:52.4	4.02	6:56
1	6:54.6	1.00	6:55
2	7:43.9	1.00	7:44
3	6:53.5	1.00	6:54
4	6:14.1	1.00	6:14
5	:06.3	0.02	6:00

The last stretch before the finish.