This was my first ever
5 mile race so I was guaranteed a personal best, and I think I speak for most
runners when I say, I love a good PB!
As expected this was an excellent turn out from fellow club
runners, as well as other local running clubs. Due to this it felt like it was
some kind of club championship (/in my mind’s eye an Olympic race as we were all
in our racing colours).
I had two goals for this race: don’t go out too fast, and
complete the 5 miles quicker than I completed the first 5 miles of the Liverpool Spring 10k race. This meant my time to beat was 33:29.
I didn’t start near the front which meant I wouldn’t get
carried away too much. The temptation was there to join the faster members of
the club but I knew I’d only regret it if I injured myself from over-doing it.
My starting point worked to my advantage as the faster
runners in front of me seemed to run off into the sunset (leaving me behind,
boo hoo!) while I maintained a steady pace over the first kilometre – 4:02; a
little fast but no sub 4 minute kilometres were going to be happening today!
The course followed a one small loop, two large loops strategy
which I quite liked, as it allowed me to see runners up ahead, as well
as being able to gauge when to make a move on the final lap for a sprint(ish)
finish.
Having not raced a 5 miler before I wasn’t sure how to pace
myself but managed to settle down into a rhythm and ended up in a bit of a
scrap with another runner (not a fight scrap, an I’m going to beat you scrap). This
helped take my mind off constantly checking my Garmin for my pace.
It was quite fun having a mini race with another runner as I
was trying to pull away from him whenever the opportunity arose, only for him
to appear at my side like a shadow... But a really, really tall shadow in neon
yellow and calf compression socks.
This bit of competition meant my pace varied; kilometre two was my slowest at 4:15, then kilometre three was my quickest at 4:01. Small lap done it was on to the final two...
The large laps of the race showed the same pattern in terms of pace - a slower middle kilometre due to a slight and prolonged incline (4:13 & 4:12) either side of quicker kilometre splits.
So, coming through the final lap I knew that I needed to try and push on at the peak of the incline to finish with a good time. My plan was to do this coming up to the peak of the incline as there was a sharp turn straight afterwards.
The latter stages of the incline approached, I stuck to the inside and pushed on. There was still half a kilometre left at this point so it was just an upping of pace, but it seemed to work - I pulled away from neon-compression-socks-man and gained, then passed, two other runners.
It came to the final bend and the home straight and I raised a sprint and passed one more runner as I watched the clock tick closer to 33 minutes... and...
...I finished in exactly 33 minutes.... Nearly 30 seconds ahead of my target
Final Race Stats
Time: 33:00
Position: 51/257
First 4km: 16:31
Second 4km: 16:29 (a good negative split! -Especially considering there was an extra 0.12km here too)
Garmin Here
A really enjoyable race, excellently organised, and a refreshing route - no roads, just park pathways. I will definitely be competing in this next year.
Race bling:
.JPG)
Final Note
I really, really, enjoyed this race, probably more so because my previous race left me feeling like I didn't enjoy myself. I was happy with my pacing, my time, and whilst it was hard going and I know I've still got a long way to go in terms of fitness to get back to where I was last year, I enjoyed the feeling of not being able to go any faster.
This bit of competition meant my pace varied; kilometre two was my slowest at 4:15, then kilometre three was my quickest at 4:01. Small lap done it was on to the final two...
The large laps of the race showed the same pattern in terms of pace - a slower middle kilometre due to a slight and prolonged incline (4:13 & 4:12) either side of quicker kilometre splits.
So, coming through the final lap I knew that I needed to try and push on at the peak of the incline to finish with a good time. My plan was to do this coming up to the peak of the incline as there was a sharp turn straight afterwards.
The latter stages of the incline approached, I stuck to the inside and pushed on. There was still half a kilometre left at this point so it was just an upping of pace, but it seemed to work - I pulled away from neon-compression-socks-man and gained, then passed, two other runners.
It came to the final bend and the home straight and I raised a sprint and passed one more runner as I watched the clock tick closer to 33 minutes... and...
...I finished in exactly 33 minutes.... Nearly 30 seconds ahead of my target
Final Race Stats
Time: 33:00
Position: 51/257
First 4km: 16:31
Second 4km: 16:29 (a good negative split! -Especially considering there was an extra 0.12km here too)
Garmin Here
Race bling:
.JPG)
Final Note
I really, really, enjoyed this race, probably more so because my previous race left me feeling like I didn't enjoy myself. I was happy with my pacing, my time, and whilst it was hard going and I know I've still got a long way to go in terms of fitness to get back to where I was last year, I enjoyed the feeling of not being able to go any faster.
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