the 5k...

I ran in the Anthem 5k this weekend with my dad, neighbor Jimmy, and friend Christine from Etown. My dad's original goal was to run the race in under 25 minutes. As race day approached, he had backed off that goal, and instead wanted to run it in 26:22, two minutes faster than last year.

Still thinking we were shooting for 25 minutes, last Wednesday I ran 3.1 miles at an 8 minute per mile pace, and finished in 24:44. It was tough, and I thought it'd be pretty difficult to break 25 on race day.

So, knowing we'd be "thrilled" to break 25 minutes with the conservative goal of breaking 26:22, we finally got to run.

We started near the start line, as we were within 100 yards or so at the official start of the race while thousands of runners crammed into the street for two blocks. Amateur race day etiquette dictates that slower runners should let faster runners get near the start line in order to avoid mass mayhem at the start of the race as faster runners pass the slowpokes. Just before the race began my dad asked a nearby runner "How fast are planning to run?" The Garmin wristwatch clad guy said "7 minute miles".

...we were too close to the front...

Less than a minute later the race started and the elite runners weren't fooling around. Their intimidating pace lead them out of sight by the time we reached the starting line about a minute after the official start.

The first mile saw my dad weaving through slower runners in the middle of the pack as quicker runners ingeniously passed us all on the sidewalk. By the time the thinned crowd allowed us to run and a comfortable, consistent pace, the first mile marker appeared. As we approached, the official race clock had just turned over the 9 minute mark. At this point I feel it's necessary to remind any reader that an 8 minute mile is no great feat. In fact, in order to qualify for a seeded position in this 5k race, you have to had run a previous 5k at something like a 5:30 pace. So that being said, as we were still being passed more than we were passing, I blurted out "man... we SMOKED that first mile..."

The second mile of this particular race has all of the turns and hills, so it's still a bit challenging to navigate even without as many nearby runners. Dad decided to pretty much sprint up any hill we encountered, and his dislike of any loud breathers and slow side by side runners caused him to sprint even more to avoid such racers. The thought crossed my mind that I may not be able to keep up with him, but I couldn't let my old man outrun me, so as we reached the 2nd mile marker together, it read 17 minutes... another 8 minute mile...

Now things were getting serious... We weren't entirely sure what time the official race clock read when we crossed, but with what could have been two 8 minute miles under our belts, the 25 minute mark was well within reach. So we picked out some guy in a gray shirt that looked like he was running barely faster than us to try and track, and just tried to match his pace. In what seemed like no time since passing the 2nd mile marker, a group of onlookers were cheering on all the runners by yelling "You can do it... only a half a mile to go!" My initial thought was "she's lying... no way did we already run a half mile since that 2 mile marker already", but I quickly dropped that thought when I noticed one guy in her group was wearing an Alabama sweatshirt. I greeted him with "War Eagle! WOOO!!" as I jogged by, and we were ready for the home stretch.

The final straightaway seemed to last forever. We could see the finish line and its inflatable arch in the distance, but that damn thing was elusive. The original plan no matter the pace was to try and run the last quarter mile pretty quickly so that we "leave it all on the field" so to speak. But in the end we opted to keep our brisk but comfortable pace and crossed the finish line just after some young lady passed us. (We aren't expecting many pictures of us crossing the finish line to make it online since the photographers were likely focusing on her!)

I didn't look at the clock when we finished since I was trying to avoid the little vomit splatters just past the finish line. So naturally our post race banana conversation focused on what we thought our time was. We decided we probably broke 26 minutes but not 25.

When we got home we immediately checked the Anthem 5k website for our times. We ran it in 24:20 and 24:21 respectively! We were more than thrilled with the result and are definitely looking forward to another fun race in two weeks when we run the 10k leg of the triple crown. My dad says he's definitely only running the 10k to finish, but we'll see if he can resist the countless runners ahead of him just waiting to be passed...

Olympics winding down

...I got my 3.5 mile run in on Friday with Carrie in 30:45... We then had sushi, watched olympics, and read all weekend... We stopped back by the Johnson Center for my 5 mile run and I did that in 43:43... I finished up right before Canada scored their OT goal to beat the US in the gold medal game... I suppose the US tuckered out when I did...

it's a new week

I missed several runs last week including the 5 mile weekend run because I worked Saturday and went to Perfect North college night / Cincinnati... I got back on the horse today for my first solo outdoor run this afternoon... Running alone into a headwind uphill wore me out, but I think I ran over 3 miles, slowing to walk once... I didn't time this one...

Of note, I ran past the house I grew up in and the new owners have put up a new fence... so yeah...

...4 more days of neuro!

...Just got home from the hospital

I was on call Monday and just finished up. I got my 4 miles in on Saturday in 35:34. Today I ran 3.5 in 29:54, a little faster than my previous 9 minute mile pace.

Doubt I'll manage to run and preround tomorrow since I'm getting in so late, so I'll hopefully be able to get it in tomorrow evening.

...the iPod has made running pass by more quickly... I plan on tweaking my playlist so I don't have to skip any songs during races. Snoop & Dre stay... Kanye gets the boot...

Week 2

I did my first outdoor run this Saturday with my dad. We ran an estimated 3.8 miles in roughly 37 minutes. Running with a partner made the run much easier.

Tonight I returned to the Johnson Center for the first run of week 2. I ran 3 miles in 25:44 on the treadmill. Since the 4 races I plan on running are all on Saturdays I decided to adjust my weekly running schedule so that my long runs fall on Saturday rather than Sunday, so I'll be running the shorter runs Mon-Wed instead of Tue-Thurs.

I hope to continue increasing the speed of the treadmill bit by bit until I can get to a 25 minute 5K pace which roughly equates to 8 minute miles...

...I'm lazy

So I realized on Wednesday that I had started the running portion of Hal's weekly workout a day early, so in lieu of running for the third straight day on sore legs I opted for doing Thursday's run on Thursday instead of Wednesday. Running 8 miles in 3 days after maybe running 8 miles in the previous year would've been killer so I think I made the right choice. At least my legs weren't too sore to take the stairs today, which is good, because the elevators at UKMC are for suckers.

3 miles... 26:45...

Day 2

2 miles... 17:50... Easy peasy lemon squeezy... But walking around after sitting through grand rounds & letting my legs tighten up was no fun...