When I woke up that morning and looked outside, I realized that the weather wouldn't cooperate. It was cool, dark and rainy as I left my place which added to the ominous feel of the morning.
C picked me up and we drove to the race site to check-in. We grabbed our stuff from the nice registration staff and went about our warm-ups.
She motored along for two miles or so. I only tagged along for about a half of a mile before turning around and walking back to the race area. I still have no endurance so I figured that it probably wasn't a great idea to warm-up for a distance anywhere near the actual race distance.
Even though I felt like that was a good decision, I still felt like I had improperly warmed up. And I didn't stretch out either. So I started the day with two big no-no's, especially since it was drizzling and the temperature was about 60 F.
I walked back to the car to pin on my race bib and fumbled around nervously with the chip timer. Surprisingly, I wasn't too nervous as I approached the start line. I signed up for the race with my girlfriend and two other friends so maybe the company helped soothe my soul. Or maybe I've just gotten wise beyond my years -- I was an absolute nervous wreck while waiting for the gun during my high school track days. Whatever the cause, it was nice to stay loose and easy before exerting myself in the longest race of my young life.
Mile One
We were off before I knew it. I started the first quarter mile rather slowly, trying to ease into the race. But I quickly got irritated with having to sidestep slower participants so I weaved my way around to the front of the large pack during the first half mile. Once clearing the mass start clot, I found myself pacing with a grandpa, a guy about my age who was wheezing very hard, a gentleman scholar with a nice Saucony hat and an older, ninjarunner (all-black clothing) woman. Together we hit the first mile marker at 7:45.
Mile Two
My dream of starting slowly and running negative splits just disappeared. I rarely ran below 8:00 pace on my training runs so what the hell was I thinking running a 7:45 while ducking people for most of that mile? When I realized this, I kind of freaked out. I tensed up a little and consciously slowed my pace.
The Saucony Hat Gentleman dropped off shortly after the one mile marker. At about 1.5 miles, Ninjarunner Woman started to peel off of Grandpa and Wheezy. I started to follow her and realized that my lungs were starting to burn. So I focused on breathing deeply (which helped) and slowed my pace. Eventually, Wheezy picked me back up with Grandpa in tow. I hit the second mile marker at 16:16.
Mile Three (and change)
I saw that time on my stopwatch and freaked out again. I had slowed dramatically without really realizing it and my goal time of sub-23:00 was slipping away. I caught a second wind, of sorts, aided by the growing amount of spectators. So I picked up the pace. Grandpa stayed with me and we dropped Wheezy. I was almost worried for the guy. Wheezy had been breathing very, very heavily since right before the first mile marker. Hopefully, he's still alive somewhere.
I had never run a 5K before. In high school, I was a 400 meter, 800 meter and hurdler. I ran the mile only once so I had little idea on how to run a 3.1 mile race. I severely miscalculated when to start my kick and it was way too late. But still, approaching the finish line was difficult. My lungs were burning.
Race Time: 24:15
A good minute off my preferred time. I was happy with the effort but felt like there was a lot left on the table. I'll live to run another day. It's a good start, I suppose.
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