Another weekend, another race. Luckily, the weather was much better than the previous two winter races. At the start, the temp was probably upwards of 40 degrees. The course was down on the south end of town and snow usually doesn't last long down there. The second race in the series was a 4 miler.
I had planned on wearing shorts during the race and threw some wind pants over them on my way out the door. When we got to the start, the wind was whipping across the sports fields pretty good and it wasn't pleasant. I thought I might just leave the pants on. However, once I made my way to the line, the huddled mass of runners provided a nice wind block and I shed my pants. The course was fairly flat headed north on the Pikes Peak Greenway trail. There were a few sections with some icy patches but the majority of the course was a nicely groomed dirt or concrete trail. I felt pretty good as I made the turn and walked a few steps to get some water down. I was able to run the entire course, save for a few steps trying to drink water at the turn. At the 3 mile mark, I started to feel some tightness in my knee and generally worn down. However, I kept moving. As I came off the creek and back into the sports fields, I wasn't sure what my time was. The girl who had paced me during mile 3 had blown by me in mile 4 and was no longer in sight.
I made it to the line in 42:49. It took me a few minutes to realize that it was faster than I had ran a 5K two weeks before. It then dawned on me that had I just run a 5K I probably would have beat my best time by at least two minutes. I was pretty stoked with my performance and I am definitely looking forward to the 5 mile race two weeks from now.
I had planned on wearing shorts during the race and threw some wind pants over them on my way out the door. When we got to the start, the wind was whipping across the sports fields pretty good and it wasn't pleasant. I thought I might just leave the pants on. However, once I made my way to the line, the huddled mass of runners provided a nice wind block and I shed my pants. The course was fairly flat headed north on the Pikes Peak Greenway trail. There were a few sections with some icy patches but the majority of the course was a nicely groomed dirt or concrete trail. I felt pretty good as I made the turn and walked a few steps to get some water down. I was able to run the entire course, save for a few steps trying to drink water at the turn. At the 3 mile mark, I started to feel some tightness in my knee and generally worn down. However, I kept moving. As I came off the creek and back into the sports fields, I wasn't sure what my time was. The girl who had paced me during mile 3 had blown by me in mile 4 and was no longer in sight.
I made it to the line in 42:49. It took me a few minutes to realize that it was faster than I had ran a 5K two weeks before. It then dawned on me that had I just run a 5K I probably would have beat my best time by at least two minutes. I was pretty stoked with my performance and I am definitely looking forward to the 5 mile race two weeks from now.
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