Yesterday was my 7th 5k of 2010. This is the ARC race, the 16th annual and one of the larger 5k races in the area in terms of participation. ARC is a local charity in support of people with developmental disabilities, and they draw a good crowd. Last year's results told me two things: one, that they would draw more than 500 people, and two, that I could finish near the front of the pack based on the course and my recent race times. I went in confident.
The weather was pristine -- sunny and warm but not hot. We had several rainy, cruddy days leading up race day and the forecast is calling for several more in the upcoming days, so this was a window of niceness in the middle of it. The course is run across two local parks that are just 5 minutes from my home -- it starts in one park, crosses a single-lane bridge that is at the crest of a decent sized hill, and then runs to another park for about a mile and a half and then back again. So we hit the bridge/hill twice, once a minute in and once near the end. The majority of this run, the entire second park, is flat and fast. I know every turn and bend of it, too, as this is where I run much of the time.
I got to the park only to realize that I had forgotten my wrist watch. I considered driving home for it but I thought parking was only going to get hairier, so I decide to just run based on feel and not worry about my splits.
There's no chip reader at the starting line, and so I realize that there will only be gun times. Knowing that I should be in the top 20% of finishers, I make my way towards the front and start about 5 rows deep. And we're off!
I hit the bridge and hill at a good clip and find a steady rhythm. No pains or even nagging injuries to bother me and it's smooth sailing. There's a water stop at about the .8 mile mark, I don't even try to drink them anymore. I dump 100% of it on my head and keep on going. I hit the turn and feel like I'm going at a steady pace.
About 10 seconds after I hit the turn, and I'm headed back towards the finish, I see my nemesis! The guy who caught me at the Beaver Lake 5k and again at the Inner Harbor 5k, and he's close enough that he could catch me with a late burst. From here on in, every time someone gets close to passing me I turn around expecting to see him. At about the 2.5 mile mark I ease up a bit, I'm a little gassed and I am trying to save something for the bridge/hill at the end. When I hit it I am able to shoot past a couple of runners. A summer of running hills in the heat and I've noticed that I tend to hit the hills better than some of the more casual runners I am running against.
The finish line is through the parking lot, I hit the home stretch and I can see that the clock is just turned past 23 minutes. I know that I'm on a good pace, close to what I ran two weeks ago. I push with what I have left and cross at 23:37 gun time. My frienemy, whom I saw last at the turn, never caught me. I wait and see that he crossed a full 75 seconds later. I say hello to him and find out that he pulled his hamstring after the turn and eased up for the last half of the race. Still, it's good to see him and his friend, now I've seen these guys at the last three races.
I finished 68th out of 592 runners, and fifth out of 21 in my M35-39 age bracket. Not fast enough to win a medal, but still quite proud of myself. It's my fastest race time ever and also, percentage wise, my best finish of the year. Next race is this coming Sunday, at the same park. Not sure how much overlap between that race and the one I just ran, but hopefully the weather and results repeat themselves.
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