This was one of those "I've got the itch to race" runs for me. North Fairfield is a tiny burg about 40 minutes from home. W wanted to go to this one, so we got up a bit earlier than we would like on a Saturday and headed out.
The town is basically two roads intersecting with a few homes and very small businesses. I haven't done many of these tiny races as I used to, but really enjoyed doing them when I lived in the Dayton area. There's a certain charm and you get to see some hidden areas of the state. The race started at the village park, which was actually much nicer and bigger than I would have guessed.
The weather was perfect for mid-July. It was high 60s, cloudy, with a cool breeze. I felt decent coming in and thought I might be able to beat my last 5k in Galion. We headed to the meager start line and headed out on the out and back course.
I felt great from the get-go but tried to not get carried away. The course was pretty flat with a few very small rollers. I started in the top five and just held steady there. A runner who I met and ran a warm-up with earlier was running the same pace, so we just ran together for the majority of this one. We hit the cones for the first mile in 6:25. Right on pace for a nice race. We passed one runner and made our way into a tie for third.
There were two high school runners in front of us and we both thought we might have a chance to catch them. But my will to run a PR type race lowered when we hit the turnaround. My watch showed 1.47 miles. Crap. This was going to be a short race. We both slowed down a bit, though still hit the second mile in 6:24. When the heck is my second mile faster than the first in a 5k? I can't think of many times at all. I still knew it was worth pushing for a good time and passed my fellow runner to get into third place. The return to the park was a net downhill which helped me at the end. I finished with a 19:05(!) but my GPS showed the course at 2.96 miles. I'm guess I would have been around 19:45, so I'll go ahead and count this as my third sub-20:00 of the year. That's more than all other years combined!
I did finish in third overall, out of probably thirty-some runners, and finished first in my age group. Next up is the dreaded 10k distance. I've been running better 5ks than ever before, so I am hopeful that will translate to a 10k PR.
Next race: Plymouth Fireman's Festival 10k- Plymouth, OH
Sunday, July 16, 2017
Friday, July 14, 2017
Ontario Liberty 5k
I'm very late on getting to this one done and my next race is tomorrow. How many times have I started a post with that sentence?
This was another of W's races for the year. A friend of hers walked it with us, which I think made it much easier for W. She came into it with as much training as the Kingwood 5k so she was nervous. The race starts at Ontario High School which is about a half mile from our house. I'm coming to terms with the fact that easier logistics makes for a more enjoyable time. The weather helped as it was cool with a light rain. The day before was very humid so we lucked out.
We started out with a long straightaway on Shelby-Ontario Road. This race was much more competitive than when I ran it two year's ago. There were only a few walkers in this one. The three of us started with some light jogging before switching to walking when we turned on to Milligan Road. This is the best downhill portion of the race and a great way to build up time. W looked very comfortable. The conversation was greatly helping her.
I didn't have my watch so there are no splits. I could tell that W was going to break her time from Kingwood by a good margin. We went around the park in a loop and back to Milligan. W did sprinkle in some more jogging at the turnaround point. She was having fun! We turned back on Milligan and (remember that earlier downhill?) had to contend with the uphill. We then turned back toward the school for one last jog into the finish.
W finished with a final time of 51:54. That chips off almost three minutes from Kingwood! On little training and a tougher course that's not bad. I think W is done with 5ks for a little while and will probably hit one in September. My next one is tomorrow and looks to be very small.
Next race: North Fairfield Lions Street Fair 5k- North Fairfield, OH
This was another of W's races for the year. A friend of hers walked it with us, which I think made it much easier for W. She came into it with as much training as the Kingwood 5k so she was nervous. The race starts at Ontario High School which is about a half mile from our house. I'm coming to terms with the fact that easier logistics makes for a more enjoyable time. The weather helped as it was cool with a light rain. The day before was very humid so we lucked out.
We started out with a long straightaway on Shelby-Ontario Road. This race was much more competitive than when I ran it two year's ago. There were only a few walkers in this one. The three of us started with some light jogging before switching to walking when we turned on to Milligan Road. This is the best downhill portion of the race and a great way to build up time. W looked very comfortable. The conversation was greatly helping her.
I didn't have my watch so there are no splits. I could tell that W was going to break her time from Kingwood by a good margin. We went around the park in a loop and back to Milligan. W did sprinkle in some more jogging at the turnaround point. She was having fun! We turned back on Milligan and (remember that earlier downhill?) had to contend with the uphill. We then turned back toward the school for one last jog into the finish.
W finished with a final time of 51:54. That chips off almost three minutes from Kingwood! On little training and a tougher course that's not bad. I think W is done with 5ks for a little while and will probably hit one in September. My next one is tomorrow and looks to be very small.
Next race: North Fairfield Lions Street Fair 5k- North Fairfield, OH
Monday, July 3, 2017
Avita Moving Hearts and Soles 5k
I ran this nice local race over in Galion last weekend. The weather has warmed up, so my 5k times are going to be slower than the blazing fast (for me) times I've been running. I felt pretty confident going into this one. I haven't had the dead legs feeling this year that I normally get this time of year.
The race started at the Avita Orthopedic Center in Galion, about a 15 minute drive from the house. While I'll always prefer the half marathon, I do like the easier logistics of running local 5ks. There's no real driving, no hotels or restaurants, the registration is cheaper, and I'm more competitive at this distance.
I did not have my GPS watch with me for this one and ran solely on feel.
We started out heading west on Hosford Road. There were a few rolling hills sprinkled in the first stretch. This helped my time out a bit. I started out in the second group of people, as there were some fast looking high school kids in this one. That's one negative to summer races. We turned south at the next road for another straightaway. I caught a few people in this stretch and knew I was in the top ten. My first mile was probably around 6:30 or so. It felt faster than it should be considering the heat.
The second mile was dull. We turned around and headed down a LONG straightaway. There were very few hills and no real scenery. I went back and forth with another runner, but both of us wound up where we began. Nobody was passing me and I wasn't passing anyone. I guess that's how you know you're in the right place! We turned around again and headed back toward Hosford Road. Prior to getting there, we headed through a small residential area to break up the monotony. I was feeling the heat and was certainly slowing down.
We finally made our way back to Hosford and I was able to finish somewhat fast. I tried to catch the other runner from earlier but with no luck. After turning back to the orthopedic center, I was able to hit the finish line in 20:43. This was good enough for 7/194 overall and second in my age group. Not a bad outing.
The next one actually occurred a few days ago. W ran in her second 5k of the year and had a very good effort!
Next race: Ontario Liberty 5k- Ontario, OH
The race started at the Avita Orthopedic Center in Galion, about a 15 minute drive from the house. While I'll always prefer the half marathon, I do like the easier logistics of running local 5ks. There's no real driving, no hotels or restaurants, the registration is cheaper, and I'm more competitive at this distance.
I did not have my GPS watch with me for this one and ran solely on feel.
We started out heading west on Hosford Road. There were a few rolling hills sprinkled in the first stretch. This helped my time out a bit. I started out in the second group of people, as there were some fast looking high school kids in this one. That's one negative to summer races. We turned south at the next road for another straightaway. I caught a few people in this stretch and knew I was in the top ten. My first mile was probably around 6:30 or so. It felt faster than it should be considering the heat.
The second mile was dull. We turned around and headed down a LONG straightaway. There were very few hills and no real scenery. I went back and forth with another runner, but both of us wound up where we began. Nobody was passing me and I wasn't passing anyone. I guess that's how you know you're in the right place! We turned around again and headed back toward Hosford Road. Prior to getting there, we headed through a small residential area to break up the monotony. I was feeling the heat and was certainly slowing down.
We finally made our way back to Hosford and I was able to finish somewhat fast. I tried to catch the other runner from earlier but with no luck. After turning back to the orthopedic center, I was able to hit the finish line in 20:43. This was good enough for 7/194 overall and second in my age group. Not a bad outing.
The next one actually occurred a few days ago. W ran in her second 5k of the year and had a very good effort!
Next race: Ontario Liberty 5k- Ontario, OH
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