St. Patty's Day 5k - Race Report

I signed up for this short Saturday race on Wednesday.  It fit perfect with my schedule as I needed to do a 5k in preparation for my Ironman California 70.3 training.  Wednesday was 70 degrees and sunny, Thursday too.  But alas that fairy tale ended Friday.  That morning it started snowing and continued through the day.  In the afternoon it picked up steam, enough so that my 7 mile commute from work took an hour.  It continued on into the night and when all was said and done, we had about 12 inches of fresh pow pow on the ground.  Unfortunately I was running not skiing.  The website said we run no matter what the weather.  I read some and went to bed.

Saturday 3/20/2010

I woke up around 7:30 for the 9am race and saw the frozen tundra out my window.  The thermometer near the window said 20.  Yowch!  I decided to dress warm and wear heavier trail shoes.  2 goals for this little race, don't get sick and don't get hurt!  1 week out from an A race to kick off the tri-season = be cautious.  So I wore some underarmour compression gear and a fleece, hat and gloves.  Breakfast was a protein and berries shake, followed with some good coffee.

I drove over to the race and my car said 14 degrees, ugh.  Anyway I arrived around 8:40, parking was a breeze.  I ran up and grabbed my registration packet, fumbled to pin on my number and ran the bag back to the car.  Saw my buddy Scott in the midst of this, no real time or desire to chat in the cold.  It was FREEZING, so I jumped in the car and started it up again and warmed my hands.   I headed back to the race and waited for about 5 minutes for the gun.

Off we went.  My shoes felt heavy, the fleece felt heavier and it was cold to breather.  I sort of figured something below 22 minutes would be achievable.  Alas the whole race was on icy pavement and I decided to simply go conservative and enjoy the sunshine on my face.  I slipped twice but didn't fall or sprain anything and finished in 23:36 good enough for a PR (I don't run 5ks much, haha) and 23rd overall out of about 250 people, so it was acceptable for my purposes.  Saw Scott again afterward and did a quick cool down walk / run.  Then I made the executive decision to head home before I felt cold.  I figured once I felt cold I'd be sick.  Good race, I finished up the day with a time trial on the trainer bike and tried out my new wetsuit in the pool.

Happy Training

Highlands Ranch Turkey Trot 5k

So Thanksgiving this year was my first Turkey Trot and first 5k. Yes some parts of my endurance world are not linear in the normal progression sense. Ironman before 5k would be a shining example. But I digress. After having raced the Wildcat Mountain Half Marathon, I am a fan of the Highlands Ranch Run Series. It is all very well organized, and a great value. Since we didn't have much planned for Thanksgiving anyway, the Turkey Trot seemed like a good idea.

The weather was perfect. Sunny, around 50 degrees nice and crisp. I arrived at the race around 8:30 and found some parking in the back of Shea Stadium. Race time was at 9am so I walked over to grab a t-shirt, timing chip and a goodie bag (like I said well organized for a little local race). There was a good crowd and about 1250 racers. I saw my friend Jackie and spotted my buddy Scott near the starting line. I got about 10 feet back from him. That put me about 100 people back which ended up being about right.

I had no real expectations other than close to 7:30 minute miles. The gun started us on our way and I went out feeling pretty light. I was passed by some folks and passed some others. The first half mile was gradually down hill but the next mile and a half was a gradual up. So I stayed strong and kept my pace between 6:50 and 7:50 depending on the hills. Around 2 miles I saw my friend Mark who manages the races and was running today. He said it looked to be downhill the final through the home stretch so I gave what I had and came in at 23:0 I think that is around 7:25 so not bad. I passed my friend Jackie near the end, but alas gun time and finish time can be different and she got me by about 4 seconds. Scott was in the top 20 and I was around 125 out of 1250 overall so top 10% and about 100 back from him which is where I self seeded myself. Some people don't get that I guess.

Anyway I hung around and chatted with folks for awhile and wished everybody Happy Thanksgiving. I said goodbye to Scott and his wife Jenn and headed home. Dana and I went out for a good hour and a half road bike ride. Thanksgiving was very chill, pizza and a movie.

Happy Thanksgiving and more importantly Happy Training!