Race to Eliminate 5k

I tackled my second race since moving to Mansfield in the Race to Eliminate 5k.  This event was held at Malabar Farm State Park in nearby Lucas and it gave me my first taste of the hills of Richland County.  Wicked hills.  Oh, and we had snow the day before, which had melted, creating a slippery mess.  I almost decided not to run this one as I knew it was being run on dirt roads and would be messy.  Thankfully, I went through with it.

There was a 10k attached to this one.  If you've ever raced one of these 5k/10k runs, they are very difficult.  You can't really tell who's running which race.  And it can cause you to start out too fast, which is exactly what I did.  We started out from Malabar Farm towards a county road, then made a quick turn onto a hilly dirt road.  One older gentleman started out at an insane pace.  I assumed he had to be in the 5k and not the 10k, so I decided to try to keep up with him.  He was used to the hills and I was certainly not.  I kept within 20 meters for the first half of the race and hit the first mile in 6:31.  Whoops.  I was kind of shooting for a 7:00-7:15 there.  The race went downhill (figuratively) for me from there. 

We hit the turnaround point, giving me a chance to see who this awesome runner was, and noticed he was wearing a bib number with red numbers (for the 10k).  So then I start thinking that I have a legit chance at winning the 5k (while being in awe of this eventual 10k winner).  I tried to pick up the pace, but I was really lagging after that first mile.  The hills were pretty bad and the mud was making it worse.  The second mile came in at 14:00.  I was definitely slowing down but still running a good race.  Another runner came close to me about midway through the third mile but I was just able to fend him off.  See where I'm going with this?

The last 100 meters or so consisted of a straight uphill.  I was gone but took a look behind me.  And saw nobody even close!  I crossed the finish line in 22:31 and, more importantly, won my second race!  I received a very nice trophy for this accomplishment, which is prominently displayed in my living room.  Despite the win, I realize I could have easily broken 22 minutes had I run a smarter race.  Next 5k, perhaps.  But now it's time to start back in with my favorite distance, the half marathon.

Next race: Ohio River Road Runners Club Half Marathon- Xenia, OH