Rodes City Run 10 K

Goal: sub-38 min. Dream goal: PR (sub-37:54). Minimum goal: sub-39.

I wasn't sure what to expect going into this race. I haven't run a 10K for a long time, and this would be the first race after winter training. My 37:54 PR was run in a probably short course with net downhill, so the dream was to kill that semi-fake PR, and replace it with a real one, on a certified, record eligible course. But my training wasn't that great, in particular my 5K time trials, and I thought even any sub-38 would be great. And I also thought it was certainly possible that I just can't do that; but I told my fire chief (at the station I volunteer at) that I will run "38:xx something", so I definitely wanted to run at least sub-39.

I started to have a bad toothache on Friday, at a tooth that I got worked on a few weeks ago. I do have a dentist appointment for next week, but it is of course way too late to do anything about it on Friday at noon, except taking some Ibuprofen. That did work, but I didn't want to overdo it, because Ibuprofen and running don't go well together (despite the myths).

I got up at 5:30 for the 8:00 start. Had my usual egg breakfast, bathroom, coffee, and I left home before 7:00. I arrived to the campus parking lot (about 1.7 miles from the start line) at 7:15. Waited a bit, then I jogged to start line. I met up with my fellow firefighters, who volunteered at the race. Did a few strides, and lined up in the "fast" corral (one needed only a 40-minute 10K to be eligible). I talked with some friends there, and before I knew, we were off.

Here is the elevation profile that I got from the satellite elevation maps combined with the GPS data.

It's not as bad as it looks, but there is that 70 feet difference between the low point and the high point of the course, and the rest is also somewhat hilly. You could call it "rolling hills" I guess, and it is mostly representative of the terrain of Louisville.

I knew the first mile was net downhill and straight, so I pushed it a bit. I wanted to get it under 6 minutes, so that I would bank a little time for the hills. I pushed hard, but controlled. I let a bunch of people pass me after my usual jackrabbit start.

Mile 1: 5:51

(All splits are Garmin auto splits. In reality, they may be a few seconds slower, because I got 6.24 miles as the course length.)

We started to climb at the mile marker. I took the first, steep part pretty hard, then I settled back to a more manageable pace. I just wanted to arrive to the second mile marker at 12:20, so that I needed a 6:29-mile here.

Mile 2: 6:10

This was a great split, but I was starting to run out of energy. I wasn't sure how long I could manage this pace. But I was on the top of the hill, and my plan was to have a "conservative" mile next. There were always plenty of people around me, and I was barely conscious of them. Some spectators, waters stations, but I didn't care. I just focused on running.

Mile 3: 6:03

Not a bad split. Mile 3 was net downhill, but plenty of climbing.

We were running around Cave Hill Cemetery. Lots of small rolling hills. I focused on running the tangents. Still taking things conservatively, because I didn't feel great. I felt I was over my lactate threshold (that's OK in a 10K), but more importantly, we were only at halfway.

Another little climb just started at the mile marker.

Mile 4: 6:08

Every mile marker was a few seconds after my auto splits. That means that my Garmin showed 24:11 at the autosplit, when I passed the actual marker, it showed 24:20. Trusting the mile markers more than Garmin, I was convinced that I was barely on pace for 38 minutes. And I knew there was one more steep hill. We were about to start it.

I powered up the hill, because it was relatively short (1/2-mile). In fact it felt easier than in my course preview training run. Trying to recover on the downhill, I got passed by an older guy. I tried to hang with him, but he was too fast.

Mile 5: 6:14

I was now alone. And tired. Still on pace for 38 minutes, but I have to ace the last mile+.

We turned onto the mile-long finish line. I was clearly fading some in the second half of this race, and one more couple was approaching from behind. Then I heard my name. It turned out it was the leader of the clinical trial I have participated in for the last 3 months. I tried to stay ahead of him, I felt a bit of a second wind, but he and a girl with him passed me slowly. I saw the finish line, but I was at my limits.

Mile 6: 6:09

Pushing hard to the finish, I saw the clock at 37:30. I knew I had my sub-38, and maybe a PR. I pushed it hard, and even in the finish line, I wasn't sure I got the PR. I had to wait until I got home to find out my time.

Last 0.24 mile: 1:18, 5:25 pace.

It took me about 10 seconds until I was sure I wouldn't pass out. I greeted my firefighter friends, who told me that I beat the chief (I knew that I would, of course). I was already pretty happy with the result, because I knew I made a sub-38 with no peaking and no taper for this race. I had no issue with my stomach or my tooth during the race.

I picked up a banana, some sweet tea, and cheered on some slower runners. I wanted to see the awards. The winner, a Kenyan looking and sounding guy, ran 29:xx. The first five male and female runners were announced, but I was 2 minutes slower than even the 5th place female. A very competitive race indeed.

I jogged back to my car, and drove home. I was really happy to see that my

time was 37:52,

a new PR by two seconds. Not only that, but this time on a real, certified, not even flat course.

This was a race, where nothing was quite perfect, but everything was 8 out of 10. I'm sure I got a good 5K training session out of it, if nothing more. But what am I talking about? This is a PR, and unless I'm willing to work on my 10K PR specifically, it is unlikely that I will ever run faster.

An equivalent 5K is 18:15-ish. I will try that, or better, next weekend.