Yesterday was my third time to run in the Capital City Classic 10K.  If you live in central Arkansas and love to race this is one you definitely want to keep on your racing calendar.  The weather has been great every time I’ve run it and the course is perfect.

Last year my big goal was to break 40 minutes in this race and when I did it was a huge confidence booster.   This year my “A” goal was to break 39 minutes.  I knew based on my recent race times that this was within my reach but it would mean running a perfectly executed race.  My goal was to average a 6:15 pace so I could run a 38:xx.  I wasn’t sure how my leg was going to feel during the race.  This past week did not go the way I had planned because of some tendonitis I’ve been dealing with in my right leg. 

Pre-race:
We left our house around 6:20.  We brought the whole family to this one which meant getting everyone ready Friday night.  The kids slept in what they planned to wear Saturday so when we woke them up we could just load them in the van.  I had snacks prepared and everything was ready to go.  We got to the race around 7:30 and I met Tish, my local running buddy.  We warmed up about a mile and a half and picked up our bibs and t-shirts. 

The kids waiting in the van with John while Tish and I were warming up…

I could feel the tendonitis during the warm-up but I just told myself it would be fine by the time I started racing.  This race had around 600 runners but does not use chip timing so Tish and I lined up right near the front. 

Race:
Mile 1- 6:12.  Right on pace.  I really did not want to start out too fast and even though this felt slow (especially compared to a 5K start) I reminded myself I could pick up the pace in mile 5 or 6.  From the get go there were two women ahead of me and I knew that it would be very unlikely for me to catch them based on previous races we’ve run together.  (Their times are a lot faster than mine.)  I didn’t know how close the 4th overall female was to me but I really wanted to finish in the top 3.

Mile 2- 6:19.  I purposefully made myself slow down a little on this one.  I guess I was being conservative and I worried about dying towards the end.  John and the kids were out cheering for me at a spot during this mile and it made me SO happy to see them!! At this point I was the only female runner among a sea of guys.  I just kept passing each one and made sure no one passed me.

seeing J & the kids during mile 2

Mile 3- 6:18.  Still feeling really good like I was holding a lot back.  I just wanted to make it to the halfway point before picking up the pace.  My watch kept fluctuating between 6:16 and 6:17 average. 

5K- 19:20- something? There was no marker but I just looked down at my watch.

Mile 4- 6:13.  Feeling great and picking off more guys along the way!

Mile 5- 6:17. Feeling good and settling in a pack with two other guys.  We were all running the same pace and this was the first time I wasn’t passing someone.

Mile 6- 6:23.  I knew this one was too slow.  My watch went from 6:16 to 6:17 during this mile and I knew the 38:xx was not going to happen.  I just didn’t have it in me today for whatever reason.

Mile 6.28- 1:41 (6:13 avg.).  I saw the clock turn form 38 to 39 and I was determined to make it under 39:30.

Abi was the photographer at this point and I guess she wasn’t ready for me to run by just yet!

Heading towards the finish- beautiful course

Total: 39:26. (6:17 avg. on my Garmin) / 6:21 Official avg.  Official race results can be found here.

Post Race Thoughts:
Overall, I must say my splits were very consistent- every single mile was within the 6:12-6:23 range.  I am very happy with my new 10K PR but I know this wasn’t my best effort.  At this point in my fitness, I feel like I should be able to average a 6:15.  Granted, my watch was a 6:17 so I was technically only 2 seconds off (per mile) but in the future I should probably account for the extra tangent time which means trying to average a 6:10 if I want to break 39.  I really like this racing distance.  I have another 10K coming up next month so hopefully I can learn from this one. 

We stuck around for the awards since Tish and I placed. The first two females finished in 37 minutes and the fourth female finished in 43 minutes so that is why I never saw another female during the race.

3rd Place Overall Female

Tish won first in her AG and set a huge PR

I’m glad they could all come for this one

This race also counted as my quality workout session before Boston.  The rest of this week will include a few easy runs and one short marathon dress rehearsal run.  The contrast water therapy seems to be helping the tendonitis issue so I am going to keep doing that everyday.  One more week to go…