I've averaged just over 30 MPW in recent months with some decent tempos and 10-13 mile long runs mixed in there. That's not nearly enough work for a fast time but my current post-35 PR of 1:44:38 was a pretty soft target. I figured that I didn't even need to have a particularly good day to beat it. I just needed to avoid a bad one.
Course and Weather:
It was an interesting tour with some pretty nice views of the Birmingham skyline. It started and finished at Regions Field, home of the Birmingham Barons (AA baseball team). It began heading east to Sloss Furnace then west past the Boutwell Auditorium then past Legion Field before turning back to town for a finish inside the stadium. Looking at the route on Map My Run, it looked relatively flat except for a nasty stretch in Mile 8 and an even uglier patch in Mile 10. Mile 11 was a gentle decline while 12 and 13 were basically flat. A cold front passed through last evening but it dawned clear and chilly with temps in the low 40s. It did warm to near 50 by the finish. I went with a long-sleeved compression and shorts. Probably a good call.
Race:
The early miles contained a few rollers but nothing severe or memorable with the exception of the bridge crossing in Mile 4 on the old Rumpshaker 5K course near Sloss Furnace, the site of one of my greatest triumphs in which I beat my old HS PR by 1 second. I ran the opening Mile with the 1:40 pace group hoping that they would go out conservative early. That didn't happen as the first mile passed by in 7:32 via Garmin but since this is not a negative split course, it was probably appropriate. In any event, I decided it was too fast and let them go. That proved to be a good call in the end. Here are the early splits. I have added 3 seconds to each mile because the course was measured 13.23. Early miles felt pretty comfortable. I didn't think I had my best stuff but I didn't need it to PR.
7:35 (7:35)
7:34 (15:09)
7:39 (22:48)
7:38 (30:26)
Heading back through the downtown area, I found myself in a good rhythm and lengthened my strides and picked up a few seconds. With the 13.23 course, I hit the halfway point right at 50 minutes flat, give or take a couple seconds. If I can survive the hills and bring it on home strong, I might have a shot at a sub-1:40 but expected to fall a bit short. That's okay. I'm going to PR. I only needed an 8:20ish pace the rest of the way and based on how I felt, there was no way that I was going to fade that badly.
7:39 (38:05)
7:34 (45:39)
7:41 (53:20) slightly uphill
Going past Legion Field, the next mile was almost all uphill though not terribly steep, it certainly slowed the pace. I was keeping with my pack so I figured I was still doing okay. Mile 9 was sharply downhill early then became more gradual. Since there would be a turnaround ahead, I was dreading going back up. For the time being however, my legs rebounded nicely. As expected Mile 10 hurt but I only remember being passed once and I knew that after that last steep hill, I would have a nice steady decline followed by a flat last 2 miles.
7:59 (61:19) all uphill
7:36 (68:55) downhill
8:10 (77:05) uphill
Okay, 5K to go now. The sub-1:40 had slipped away and I was probably looking at a low-mid 1:41, which was still pretty solid. Legs were trashed after the climbs but I figured after some nice downhill, they'd come back and I could still finish strong. That didn't happen. I kept trying to dig but nothing was there. I got passed a few times but nobody was blowing by me. I spoke to a few others afterwards who all said they couldn't come back either. By the end of Mile 12, I had to accept a 1:42:xx but I did my best to stay positive and focused. Just hang on. You've got a PR and there's no way you lose it now. Again, I tried to dig and found nothing until I turned into the stadium for the finish and did close pretty strongly despite not being near anyone down the stretch.
7:59 (85:04) downhill
8:10 (1:33:14)
8:11 (1:41:25)
:59 last bit (1:42:24)
Pace per mile: 7:49, AG: 11/51. Percentile rank: 78
Final Thought:
I blame insufficient training for the fade at the end but sub-1:40 is clearly in sight. I went with NADH instead of Ultimate B pills. I chanced it and it was probably a good call. Still, I don't think I was quite in equilibrium and a quick attempt at the toe touch test confirmed that I was not. Still, the fact that I can PR despite the pills being a tad off is encouraging. Another curious finding was an average HR of only 138. That is MUCH too low for an all out effort and NADH should help with that in the future. Cadence of 178 was good. Word on the street is 180 is ideal. Unfinished business for the remainder of the year includes a sub-6:00 Mile, another shot at a sub-21 5K and a yearly mileage total above 1500.
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