This weekend I ran in a race that proclaims that it is the 14th largest race in the United States. I’m hazy on the details of how they know year to year how large a race will be but in this case, it felt like the 14th largest race in the country.
There were 640 women in my age bracket!
Yes, in a 5 year age bracket. I didn’t win my age group. Though according to my math loving husband, my 34th pace finish was almost in the top 5%! There were so many people passing me, I was surprised there was anyone left behind me!
What I did wrong
I went out way too fast. I had not been training for faster than a 9 min mile pace for 6 miles and I wanted to be at 8:30 on race day. I was too fast for the first 2 miles, around an 8:10 to 8:15 and too slow in mile 4, over a 9 min. My average was around 8:45 but I think if I had started at the 8:30, I might have had a better chance of staying there.
It’s hard to “run your race”when there are 14,000 people around you, I really wanted to match my seed thime of 53-55. I managed to stay under but I think a more consistent run would have been better for me psychologicaly.
I shouldn’t have used ear buds or listened to music. This race is known for having a “Block Party” feel. There are bands on every corner and porch parties the entire way. I had my music turned down so I could hear if someone yelled “get out of the way!” or “runaway bus!” I didn’t really get into my own music due to the ambient noise. I didn’t really get into the live music or the party atmosphere because of my earbuds. I would have been better off leaving the music at home and enjoying the race.
I was nervous about being in a large crowd and it affected my sleep. I am a little paranoid and the though of a violent or random attack was in the back of my mind. I don’t know how much you can change the way you are wired. Large races like this one, might not be for me!
What I did right
I pushed hard and didn’t quit. Until the finish line, then I felt like I would throw up for a minute. I am a lazy runner. I don’t like pain. I had a cramp around mile 4 and actually stopped for a few seconds, touched my toes and then pressed on! After this, I got back on pace and finished to the best of my training.
I paid for parking earlier in the week. Not knowing the course and worried about navigating the “big city” on race morning, I did something I wouldn’t normally do. I paid for parking. In advance. I reserved a spot quite close to the start/finish line and it made the morning much easier. We even walked back before the start to put our sweatshirts in the car.
We arranged a meeting spot. Finding a single person out of 20,000 people in hard. Planning a meeting spot is easy. Do it the easy way. We were not running with our phones and made sure we had a meeting spot so one of us didn’t have to walk home.
I stepped out of my comfort zone and tried a new race, in a new city. This is what I love about running. Running is a great way to explore new places. I find that when I do too many of our local races, I lose this sense of freedom and exploration. One of my goals is to try new races in new places!
