Run for the Water: Race Report

Finally, a race, albeit a short one, I can be proud to write a report.

Had my first 10-mile race Sunday morning, so no matter what, it was going to be a PR because while I'd raced 15ks and half marathons, I'd never raced a 10-miler.

My legs are still kind of heavy from the Chicago Marathon earlier this month, so I didn't really know what to expect or how long I could maintain a decent pace, especially since this course seemed to have every hill in central Austin. Scenic. Exposition. Pecos. Exposition.

So, my goal was to run comfortably hard for as long as I could and if I could stay "comfortable" long enough, turn it on at the end.

Here were my splits.

1. 7:06
2. 7:03
3. 7:11
4. 7:02
5. 7:10

6. 7:10
7. 6:47
8. 6:54
9. 6:48
10. 6:42

My final time was 1:09:52, a 6:59 pace. Negative split. Fastest mile was my last mile. I'll take it. Of course, since the guys in my age group are so fast, I wasn't even in the Top 5 of 40-44 year-olds.

Like I said, a very hilly course. From just after Mile 3 to around Mile 7, there was hill after hill after hill. The good thing is what goes up must come day. My strategy with the hills was to let myself fly on the downhills and hang on during the uphills. For instance, On a downhill, my pace for a particular mile may have been in the mid to high 6s. I figured that was time in the bank for that particular mile. So, when the uphill came, I didnt stress if I was too slow and so my pace for the mile would slow from, say, 6:45 to 7:10 or so. On the flat part of the course, I easily made up the time.

As you can see, I stayed under 7:00 min/mile for each of the last four miles. Again, legs still kinda heavy from the Chicago Marathon, so I wasnt expecting this. And something else, my lungs actually started feeling better by Mile 9 and I could actually talk to the volunteers. But, my legs had no spring left in them and so I just kinda cruised until I got to the last 200 meters and then sprinted this race out.

ALLERGY UPDATE: Had my appointment with my allergist last Monday. They said nothing is wrong with me. I can eat anything. No reactions.

I know its weird to go to the doctor HOPING something is wrong with you. I mean, had they said I was allergic to gluten or something like that, then I could blame that on my marathon problems. But nope. That would be too easy.

Of course, that still doesnt mean that certain foods dont cause me problems. Its just that they dont cause allergies. So now I'll try to get with a nutritionist, work on strengthening my core and keep working to figure out why cramps derail my marathons.