Ra Ra Ra Race Recap

My goals for this spring season were both of the following: to race freqently and well, and to PR in any event I attempted shorter than a marathon. The idea behind all of this is that if I can go into next fall as a low or sub 15 minute 5k runner, rather than the 15:26 guy that I've been, I might have sufficient speed to run a faster marathon, which for me means something more like 2:25-2:28. Now let's leave aside the questionable logic implied there (there are plenty of women with faster marathon PR's than me who I could take 9 times out of 10 in a 5k), those were my goals, and I just wanted to get fast, fit, and tough, and race like the gritty SOB that I imagine myself to be.

I've already accomplished part of my goal: I've notched PR's in the 5k and 10k, and I've raced 12 times since starting this “season” in December. Numbers 11 and 12 of that total came yesterday.

Part one of my double came at the Castle Hills Fiesta 5k, which was what I would generously term a “small” race. More accurately, there were about 50 people at the race.

Really wasn't joking about the 50 people thing

It was old school, which is just fine with me – cover whatever distance faster than everyone else, anything else is secondary. I ran 15:48 for first, roughly a minute and thirty seconds ahead of 2^nd. Was the course accurate? No idea. I just ran pretty damn close to all out until I got to the finish line. I look at it as the best training you can do – there isn't much that's more specific to racing a fast 5k than racing a 5k. And if I can continue to find awesome race directors who will let me in for free, I will happily substitute these semi-time-trials for workouts.

This pretty much sums up the race

Race #2 was the Fiesta Fandango 2.6 mile run. Why 2.6 miles? The race just follows the parade route for the Fiesta Flambeau parade, part of Fiesta, which is a pretty damn big deal here in San Antonio. The race went off at 6:40pm, with the parade to follow at 7 pm, and the crowds gathered in bleachers along the downtown streets having been there for several hours already. Which is to say, man those people were drunk, rowdy, and loud.

I struggled mightily to keep up with one younger guy for the first half mile, but thankfully was able to gap him not long after. Once I got a few seconds on him, I was so overcome with relief that my legs (which up to that point had felt shit-tacular) were holding up, I decided to savor the moment, and the crazy crowds, and goof around a little bit.

It was really awesome to be in a race and not feel stressed out about competing all the way to the finish – I just picked it up when I felt capable of doing so, slowed down when I felt taxed, and waved to the onlookers along the way. My final time was 12:45, which if the course distance is to be believed is 4:54 pace, or 15:14 5k pace. I have some doubts that I ran that fast, but again this was old school – just get to the finish before everyone else, and that I got done. All in all, a successful day, and it gives me the confidence to go after my 5k PR at Rice this Saturday, assuming I haven't procrastinated so much that I can't get in to the race. I don't know if it will work out, but I do know that when this fall rolls around I will have the confidence to attempt to take more than a few minutes off of my marathon best.