09/03/2012 - Warwick 5 Mile Race

Race Date: Monday September 3rd, 2012
Race Name: 21st Annual Warwick Lions Club 5 Mile Race
Race Price: $20
Race Description: A loop starting at the Warwick Middle School on local roads with some small hills.
Race Location: Warwick Middle School - 225 West Street, Warwick, NY

  

Race Distance: 5 miles
Distance Traveled: 46.2 miles

Race Time: 9:00am
Weather: Cloudy and around 70

Swag: T-Shirt, Pencil, Flower Seed Packets
Food & Drink: Water | Fruit | Bagels | Cookies
Number of Participants: 87
Results: http://www.coolrunning.com/results/12/ny/Sep3_21stAn_set2.shtml

My Results

Time: 35:53.8
Pace: 7:11
Place: 8 of 87
Men (Age 30-39): 1 of 1






Personal Race Info
Pre-Run: 2 Tums
                 Salt Stick Plus Pill
                 Gatorade w/ Chia Seeds
                 Hammer Gel

During-Run: N/A

    I woke up feeling tired but also feeling pretty good. I had a homemade fresh juice slushie for breakfast and that just really helps to start the day off good. The hour ride to the race was tough cause I was feeling pretty tired. It was a nice morning for a drive though and much better than driving to work.
    Arrived at the school, parked and picked up my bag w/ my t-shirt. Warmed up a bit around the school and again was feeling pretty good about the race. I was really happy to see that they had a timing reader at the start. This meant that I didn't need to make sure I was at the front of the starting pack. There was a ton of people at this race but most of them were doing the 5k. While I was waiting for the race to start I made some chit chat with another racer who was very nice.
    The race started and since I was so far back the initial couple hundred feet were really slow. Then I did my best to sprint around people so I could make up some time and not get stuck. Luckily about 3/4 of a mile in the 5 mile racers split from the 5k racers and things definitely sped up. The guy I was talking to before the start had another racer he trained with head up to the front of the starting line and I knew my goal was to catch and pass him. After I made it through the initial group of 5k'ers I spotted him out in front by a couple hundred yards. It took me about 3 miles to catch up to him but I finally overtook him on a hill.
    Something happened in the last mile I have never experienced before. As I was coming up to pass another runner she tripped on her foot and fell face first to the pavement. It seemed like it happened in slow motion and there was nothing I could do about it. She was an older lady and I wasn't sure what to do but stop and try to comfort her. Luckily there were other people around to help out and once they took over I headed back on my run. It probably cost me about 30 seconds off my overall time but did somewhat kill my focus.

    Coming into the last quarter mile I passed a few more people that had been keeping up with my pace but I really pushed to the end. Again, I think I could probably push a bit harder during the race since I usually have energy left at the end. It was a nice sprint to the end though. I always feel bad when I pass young kids right at the end of the race but I wanted the best time I could get.
     The food and music was pretty good at the end. I ate some watermelon, a bagel with pb&j and a local apple which was delicious. I'm so happy it's apple picking season. Gonna have to go picking so I can have some fresh apples to juice and eat during the day.

    I took a few pictures around the school but there wasn't too much scenery.

    Overall this was a really well run race. I guess with 20 years of experience they know what they are doing now. I'm happy to say I won my first age group! Of course there may have only been 1 person in my age group but a win is a win. It's surprising that there was no one else in my age group since normally it's a tough group. Nice to bring home a gold medal. I also met someone at the end of the race who is doing the Wineglass Marathon coming up at the end of the month so that was kinda cool. Next weekends races are going to be tough...look forward to those posts.

09/01/2012 - Newtown 5K

Race Date: Saturday September 1st, 2012
Race Name: 7th Annual Newtown Road Race 5k
Race Price: $20
Race Description: Relatively flat, fast course is offically sanctioned and certified by the United States Track and Field Assocation
Race Location: Dickenson Park - 50 Elm Drive, Newtown, CT 06470
Race Information: Run is through the beautiful community of Newtown and includes many landmarks of this special town

  

Race Distance: 5 kilometers
Distance Traveled: 49 miles

Race Time: 9:00am
Weather: Sunny, calm, temperatures in the 70's

Swag: T-Shirt, Pen, Pencil, Chip Clip
Food & Drink: Water | Fruit | Bagels | Juice | Pizza | Donuts | Brownies
Number of Participants: 534
Results: http://www.plattsys.com/m1shell.asp?eventid=921

My Results

Time: 21:35
Pace: 6:57
Place: 40 of 534
Men (Age 30-39): 5 of 46




Personal Race Info
Pre-Run: 2 Tums
                 Salt Stick Plus Pill
                 Gatorade w/ Chia Seeds
                 Gu Tri Berry Gel

During-Run: N/A

    I woke up and felt like going back to bed. I don't know if it was all the unhealthy food I ate yesterday but I just wasn't feeling it. I pulled myself together and got out of the house just after 7 for the hour long ride to the race. About 15 minutes into the drive I realized I forgot my heart rate monitor. I didn't have time to drive back to get it so I just had to except this wasn't going to be a good day.
    Driving through Newtown, CT was a pleasant surprise as it was filled with old, magnificent houses. I got to the park early enough that I got a parking spot right near the start/finish line.  Picked up my bib from the registration desk and was surprised that I didn't get a t-shirt. Went back and asked about it and it turns out they would give them out after the race. This seemed strange for a normal road race but I could actually see it working out better for most people.
    Did a bit of a warm up around the park and checked out the scenery. It was a nice park but not much in terms of picture taking. You'll see what I did find after the race later on. Still was not feeling good about this run before it started. I was towards the front of the start but some young girls got all pushy trying to get off to a quick start which of course didn't last very long. The race itself was pretty flat with a few slight up and downs. The last mile or so was on a rocky dirt road and was tougher to run than the rest of the run. I was able to pass a few people in the last mile. I really felt I could have done better if I had felt more into the run. I pushed pretty hard for the final sprint so that no one would pass me.

    The food and stuff they had after the race were pretty good. Lots of different drinks and food. I had a banana, water, capri sun juice, 1 munchkin and a bagel w/ cream cheese. I saw lots of people eating the pizza but I didn't feel like it looked that good. I went and took some picture while waiting for the results to be posted.

    Overall, once the race was over, I felt like I enjoyed the race and was glad I went. Once again I was out of the medals but I still feel like I ran a pretty good time. Maybe since the course was so flat I should have done better. I might have to make sure I come back to this race next year to see how I can do.