2014 Capitol 10k

Forty minutes.

I have been chasing forty minutes in a 10k for what seems like forever. I've fallen just shy of breaking 40 a couple times, even though Athlinks would tell you my 10k "PR" is 39:38. That's a lie. That was for the infamous-in-my-head "wrong way 10k" in October 2007, where I most likely didn't run even 6 miles, let alone 6.2. It wasn't my fault, but it still burns a little.

I didn't think today would be any different. Well... I mean different as far as time goes. I was pretty sure they wouldn't send us on a wrong turn and leave us running only 5.8 miles for the Captain K. Anyway, I have been training for a different 10k a few weeks from now, and wanted to run this race as a bit of a tune up before the "main event". My time trial a couple weeks ago suggested I was in shape to run yet another 41-something. So I didn't really have my mind set on breaking 40 today. I was hoping to get under 41 though.

Getting to the punchline here - I finished in 39:47!!! That's exactly a one minute PR!

It was a pretty good day overall. Before the race I ran into several people I hadn't seen in a while and got to catch up a little on how they were doing. The weather was nice - cool, just a tad wet. The rain may have kept some of the runners away, but it seemed just as crowded as ever. The race organizers seemed to be having a few challenges with their PA system though. If there were any speeches about anything, I didn't hear them. It was about halfway through the national anthem that most of us realized it was being sung, and the race started without a bang.. or an airhorn, or any audible announcement of any kind. I was near the front and it seemed like we just kind of took off at 8AM. It was kind of weird, especially for such a gargantuan race. Or maybe I am just losing my hearing.

The first three miles were kind of uneventful, except that I felt like my legs were pretty much toast after the big hill on Enfield. But then I passed the 5k mark, seeing 20:08 on my watch, and the idea of going under 40 resurfaced in my head. It rejuvenated me somehow, and for at least two miles I forgot about my legs and just tried to speed up a little bit. In typical fashion, I started tanking out between mile 5 and 6 when my lungs caught fire and they reminded me of my legs. But I just kept hanging on and hoping. When I could finally see the finish clock, I knew I had it. There was enough energy left to finish with my arms in the air.

Splits: 6:42, 6:20, 6:21, 6:08, 6:16, 6:29, 1:31

And now, the after-party. I checked out my placement online. 115th overall, and 12th in my age group! Nice! Nicer if I could have made it to the top 10...

I guess that's something to shoot for next time I run this race. Plus, I still have to obliterate my silly pseudo-PR from 2007. Maybe I can do that second one three weeks from now.