Quick results

So, the quick and dirty account of today's 10k race.

1. I rolled with the punches and and didn't get worked up about things out of my control. Truthfully, this was a well organized race, and there weren't too many things to get worked up about. Parking was a bit of a gong show, but I still found a spot only 2 blocks away. I got there 15 minutes early and spent 10 minutes waiting for the bathroom, but I knew I had the time. Fortunately, some 5k racers let me go ahead of them in line, so I got through quickly (their race started 15 minutes later.)

2. I succeeded in pacing myself well. I did line up far too close to the front, so I was tested right away when everyone around me was going much faster. I kept to my pace though, which was slightly faster then I had planned but was still a pace that I basically stayed at for the whole race - up until the last couple kilometers.

3. I pushed myself hard and finished strong. I ran that 10k faster then I have ever run before. My final km was the fastest I have ever run a full kilometer. I felt like I was going to puke when I crossed the finish line and I had almost nothing left in my tank. A few minutes later though, I felt amazing.

My time? As I mentioned before, I wasn't setting a specific goal. However, thinking optimistically, I expected that I'd likely be able to complete it in 1:02. I finished in:

1:00:12
This is my chip time

Now, I'm going to admit that there is a little bit of bittersweetness to this time. Like the fact that I was TWELVE SECONDS away from breaking the 1 hour mark. Yet, if I consider the race as a whole, I can't think of a single kilometer I ran that I could have run harder. I will break that one hour mark; it just wasn't on this race.

Having said that, I achieved a personal best with a margin of 6 minutes, 16 seconds. That's pretty darn sweet.

A full race report will come later!