Father’s Day Race Against Prostate Cancer Presented by ABC7 (5M)
Overall Time: 31:27
Pace: 6:17
Place: 167 of 5203
AG%: 67.8%
Weather: 78 Degrees, 80% Humidity
Start time: 8:30
Splits: 6:11, 6:05, 6:25, 6:29 (20-second walk break), 6:12
This was one of those races that I knew I wasn’t going to enjoy. The heat and the humidity were really a killer, but 5202 racers and I decided to show up and tough it out. Tough it out we did, but this race marks the my debut — AS A WALKER! That’s correct you heard it right — I WALKED! Right after the 3rd mile, I started to overheat and I had to pull off to the side for a 20-second walk. It wasn’t pretty. I was able to finish that mile in 6:29, but I was disappointed to say the least.
Except for the walking part, I’m happy with this race. It was slower than I would have liked it to be — but honestly, considering the heat and the crazy humidity I knew that I wasn’t going to be going for some crazy PR. I PR’ed regardless (only because my only other 5-mile race was when I first started running, and it was a 35:00+ time), and was happy that I kept my shit together.
I ran with a new running friend, Michael S, who ended up being a bit of a help toward the end of the race. I suppose he’s more of an endurance runner (a 2:55 marathoner) because surprisingly I was able to beat him to the finish. He did make for a good running partner though; having him run with me was definitely good my morale.
The race went something like this:
Mile 1 : I wasn’t close to the front of the corral, so as usual there were a lot of people in front of me who shouldn’t have been. Annoying. This 6:11 first mile should have been a 6:00.
Mile 2 : I’m settling in to my groove here, and Michael and I are more or less shoulder to shoulder. As we weave through traffic, he typically led and I was happy to follow. This mile was a little hilly, but nothing terrible. I end up with a comfortable 6:05.
Mile 3 : Yikes, I’m starting to heat up a bit. There was supposed to have been a "misting station" but it didn’t appear. My attempt to get water met with disastrous results, and for the first time in a race I actually dropped the cup (ugh!) and got no agua. I started to fade fast.
Mile 4 : I stopped! It wasn’t a conscious thing; my body just stopped and I pulled over to the side of the road as runners passed me. 10 seconds later, my friend Michael catches up with me and starts to walk with me. I yell at him to, "Keep going!" and he does. After I catch my breath, I pick things back up. This would be the slowest mile, at 6:29. If I take out the 20-second break, this mile was 6:09 which would have been right on target.
Mile 5 : Final mile. I just wanted to hold on, and I did. Michael was in my sights, and he really pulled me through the last 1.5 miles. I pass him and pick up the pace. Somehow I kept my shit together and finished a full 30 seconds ahead of him. The heat starated to get to people, and I must have passed a couple dozen runners in this last mile. It felt real good, because several of them I recognized from previous NYRR races, and they’re fairly strong runners