Friends of the W&OD 10K - Race Report

Saturday August 1, 2009
It was the first day of August and it was going to be a hot one. The race was at 6:30 pm. The good thing about evening races is that you get to sleep in. The bad thing is, figuring out, how much and when to eat before the race. After a little snafu with getting my race packet because I was the last person to register online (it was filed by bib number, not alphabetically), I began my warm up and pre-race necessities(standing in the long line waiting for a porta-potty). The race was being held on the bike trail and with over 300 people registered to run, you can imagine how jam-packed we were. I tried to squeeze in a spot and was pretty far back from the starting line. I didn’t even know the race had started until the people in front of me began inching forward. 20 seconds to cross the line (glad this was chipped time) and then I started to try to weave my way through people. Finally the crowd started to spread out. By this time, I’m sure the temperature was approaching 90. The sun was right in our faces for the first half of the race. Mile one was fast, on a slight downhill incline (7:24), After another ½ mile we took a little spur off into a neighborhood. This had the only real hill in the whole course, and I was glad. Once back on the trail, I tried to concentrate on form, but by mile two (15:24) I had already slowed considerably. I was also beginning to feel the weight of food eaten earlier in the day. When we passed mile 3 (23:15), I thought the turn around would be at the 5k mark, but we kept going, and finally turned around right where a road crossed. Now I knew the reason for the spur, so we wouldn’t have to cross any streets. This was a water stop and I grabbed a cup and threw the water on me. At mile four (31:39), I was happy to see that I had beat my time in the last four mile race. It was then I realized that I might actually be able to get a new PR. The problem was it was so hot! My clothes were drenched with sweat. Sweat was running down my legs and into my shoes. Suddenly, I had a new problem. My bowels started acting up and I had to go to the bathroom bad. I started looking around, seeing if there was a place on the trail where I could duck off. I finally passed mile five(40:29). Focus on the finish, I told myself, then you can take care of business. Just 1.2 miles to go. I concentrated on trying to pass the person in front of me on the trail. Everyone was slowing down. I think I got by 3 guys when finally the finish line came into view. Sprint across the mat – official chip time 50:41, a new PR by 16 seconds! I’m inching down towards breaking the 50 minute barrier. Give me 10 degrees cooler, and 10 less pounds and I’ll have it. I liked the race, and I’ll probably do it again – some people were complaining about the fact that there was no Gatorade. One person was transported to the hospital in an ambulance, probably due to the heat. I wish they had 5 year age group awards instead of 10. I would have placed in the 45-49 age group. I came in 6th in my age group, 20th out of 157 women, and 80th out of 328 total runners.
Now to get ready for the 50K next weekend!