I ran this small 5k at the Ashland YMCA last week. I'm enjoying these local 5ks a lot more than I would have expected a couple years ago. However, I did start to get a mild cold the night before with a bad sore throat. Race morning was rough as I actually contemplated scratching from the race. I went back and forth about it several times, similar to last year's Kilt and Kolor Run, and finally decided to try it out and take it easy.
The weather was decent with temps in the high 30's to low 40's but the wind was strong. We started on a side street near the YMCA and I headed out at what I thought was a conservative pace. There were maybe 4-5 people ahead of me at the start and I just tried run strong and place in my age group. We headed west toward downtown and then headed north for a bit. I felt surprisingly good but was horrified by the 6:23 for the first mile. I was aiming for around 7:00.
We then headed east on some side streets. I passed a few runners during the second mile and kept up a nice pace. The roads and sidewalks were a bit uneven during this section but nothing too bad. The eventual female winner was right ahead of me and I kept pace with her for the remainder of the race. There were two people behind us by maybe 50 meters or so. I usually slow down quite a bit during the second mile of a fast race. Here I actually ran a 6:29 to keep up the solid pace. Not bad.
There wasn't much to report during the return to the YMCA. We did have some confusion at a turn. We were supposed to cross the street but still head straight. One of the guides told us to turn left and then corrected it a few seconds later. It probably only cost us a few seconds, but I did hear some other runners say they headed the wrong way for a bit. The female winner passed me at the three mile mark which came in at 6:49. I finished strong down the grassy finish to a solid 20:09. I believe this is my sixth fastest 5k! Not bad for almost scratching. This effort placed me 3/66 overall and first in my age group.
The next race is at a distance I haven't ran in six years, the five miler. I didn't really race then so I'm expecting a PR.
Next race: Cooper Tire Centennial 5 Miler- Findlay, OH
