Monday, June 17, 2013

Niantic Bay 10K

Friday, June 14, 2013

Full results here.  3rd out of 215.  37:53, 6:06 average pace.

Warm-up:  Trying to keep some weekends free for long runs and rides, and this one clicked with a Friday evening time.  Warmed up for 2.5 miles on the course with Jonny, Matthew, and Crutch for the first mile or so.
Race start

Out:  Out and back course, with a small loop at end which avoided a cone turnaround that I dislike.  Jonny took off right out of the gate (surprise, surprise), followed by me and an 18-year old tall kid.  The kid went by me pretty easily and then hopped right on Jonny's tail.  I watched the two of them all the way out to the point, and felt for Jonny in the hunted position.  At the peninsula, was hoping for more of a picturesque view like Brenton Point, but not much waterview.  I was petering out by this point, and as we made the turn doubling back onto the out-back course, that was the last I saw of Jonny.
Mile 1/2/3:  5:51, 5:56, 6:04
Finishing strides

Back:  The thrill of seeing oncoming runners keeps me motivated for a while, but by the end of Mile 4, I'm running completely as an island.  Can't see anyone ahead of me; can't hear anyone behind me.  The small uphill in the sun at Mile 5 doesn't help, and my pace continues to slow.  The final mile is a relief as mostly downhill back to sea level and shaded.
Mile 4/5/6:  6:09, 6:15, 6:08
Good showing for Team WTAC

Wrap-up:  Cooled down with WTAC teammates Jonny (WINNER!), Steve, and Josh, before coming back for chowder, pizza, and awards.  Caught up with fellow bloggers Beth and also Don W.  Wasn't thrilled with my time and slowing paces, but had a really fun time.  Nice party atmosphere with a band right along the water.  Notable achievements:

  • Jonny:  Way to persevere for the W!  Really happy to learn he had outlasted the kid.
  • Matthew:  6th place overall!!!  On the warm-up, he was talking about hoping to go below 45.  He broke 40 minutes!!
  • Jeff V:  He was the one that I got the first communication from on this race, and turned in a pretty awesome 4th place.
  • Steve:  Anything longer than 5K he usually backs away from these days, and he said afterwards he was glad I encouraged him.  (I was texting him during the day)
  • Crutch:  The look on his face when he got called up for age group award was precious!
  • John:  Another age group win!



3 comments:

  1. Nice work out there. That's a pretty successful showing of WTAC runners.

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  2. tell the kid who's wearing bib #119 to SMILE - he had a AWESOME race

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  3. Great write-up! WTAC showed up big time for that race, I'd say, with four in the top six? You guys did great, and Matthew crushed it. Everybody making progress!

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