11 Are UABle 5K RR

This one will go down as a forgettable event. Neither very good nor bad so I will not even post this among my RRs on the side of the blog so this will be a limited edition post. LOL.

As my regular readers know, I am taking thyroid glandular supplements to combat the fatigue, low grade depression and apathetic blahs and I need an exact amount to feel well. At 500 mg, I felt perfect as of 2 days ago. At 475, I was too tight and at 525, I was too loose all the while the magic dosage is trending down ever so slowly. At the rate I'm going, I will be off this stuff around New Years and dare I say it, I could have a victory on 1 of the 2 fronts. Since capsules come in 150 mg each, it is very difficult to get it right every day. Today, I just missed the sweet spot. I was fine just walking around but when I warmed up, it seemed just a hair off. On a great day, I can do maybe 300-400 meters worth of strides at near 6:00 pace and it feels effortless. Today, I could not get much below 6:30 without some discomfort. Still, I resolved to give it a shot since I missed Retro. I didn't feel so good warming up before Statue2Statue and it turned out to be my best race of the year so far.
Course:
This one starts on Homewood HS then turns onto Lakeshore trail then you turn off onto a road that leads back to the school. There's a short downhill early but the first 3K is pretty much level. The 4th kilometer is gently rolling with more ups than downs. The rollers can really take a toll at that stage in the race. Then, around 2.5 miles, you have to go up another small hill before a gentle decline to the finish. Difficulty 3 out of 10. Weather was close to 80 with over 80% humidity. Not good but I managed a 19:42 last year under similar conditions.
Race:
Like most 5K racers, I have a tendency to go out too fast and if you're 5 seconds fast through the first quarter mile, you could be doomed by the end of Mile 2. Today, I was pretty smart in aiming for near 6:00 pace and did not get caught up with trying to run with the leaders. I was pretty calm just under 6 pace most of the first mile then we made a 180 degree turn around 0.93, which cost about 2 ticks so I came through the Mile marker in 6:02. Fine with that but can I maintain it? The answer was no. Early pace for the 2nd mile was around 6:10 but I was fading and knew that I would wilt in the heat and hills ahead. I took several looks at the Garmin and found to my dismay that my pace was gradually slowing. Still, nobody was passing me. In fact, I would catch 3 runners between Mile 1 and 2.5. When we got to the rollers, I was in pain and the 2nd mile passed in 12:24 for a 6:22 split. I struggled hard to keep the pace for I knew that if I could simply repeat the 6:22 and finish strong, I could at least beat my comeback PR of 19:27. Unfortunately, the heat and rollers took too much out of me. I was at 15:40 for 4 kilometers so I had covered the previous half mile in 3:16 and it seemed unlikely that I could manage a 3:47 final K. Just like last year, the final hill left me shot. Even with the slight decline, my pace did not change and I came through Mile 3 in 18:57. I'd need a 45 second finish just to tie last year's time. I didn't make it and came through the line discouraged in 19:45.
Final thought:
An average performance. Anyting under 20 is satisfactory but with every PR attempt that falls short, the frustrations mount. The fact that I took a baby step backward from last year does not feel good either. In good weather, this was good for about 19:20 or so. Conditions should be better in 2 weeks. Grade is a solid B.