Childhood Cancer 5k

I added this one late as I had the morning free and the race started and finished about a half mile from home.  You can't beat such convenience.  The proceeds went to Akron Children's Hospital which is a great cause and organization.

The race started at 10:00 and it was already muggy.  I run this course several times a week and know how tough the hills can be during the second half.  Did that stop me from starting out too fast?  If you guessed yes then you haven't been reading this blog for long.

We started at Ontario High School for a nice straightaway.  I came out in the top three and quickly moved to second place.  I recognized the eventual winner and knew I couldn't catch him and simply tried to maintain second.  We then turned east on Milligan Road for the best downhill portion you can imagine.  It's a steady and long downhill that doesn't completely ruin the quads.  I felt good but realized my error as I finished the first mile in 6:05.  Shocker.

It was getting increasingly humid as we headed south and back around through Marshall Park.  I tried to keep up the pace through the park and chanced looking back.  The next runner was at least a minute behind me and the first place runner was at least a minute ahead.  I was right where I needed to be.  The second mile came in at 6:30, though I knew that would end once we turned back onto Milligan and headed up the hill.  I was right.  There are rolling hills combined with a gradual uphill on this portion.  I was shot by this point and just hanging on for a good time.  I actually walked up one of the rollers to conserve energy for the finish.  We finally made our way back to the straightaway leading to the school.  I didn't push the pace, as there was no reason to, and hit the third mile in 7:25.  My overall time was a respectable 20:50.  That was good enough for the age group win and 2/77 overall.  Not bad for a last minute race.

I'm going with a quick turnaround and doing it again with a local 5k on Memorial Day.

Next race: A Run to Remember 5k- Shelby, OH

Flying Pig Half Marathon

W and I made our way to her hometown for one of my favorite races, second only to the ORRRC Half Marathon.  I've ran the Flying Pig twice and had surprisingly good showings at both.  I wasn't quite sure what to expect since I've been lowering the mileage this year.

Miles 1-5: We started off from Paul Brown Stadium and headed east before crossing a bridge into Kentucky.  I think this is a cool part of the race as you hit one of the highlights early on.  Plus you get a slight elevation change running toward the river and then up and down the bridge.  It's a good way to break into the run.  We then headed into Newport, Kentucky and headed west along the river.  I felt good during these early miles but held back knowing what was waiting later on.  We then hit another bridge heading back to Ohio and kept heading north to downtown Cincinnati.  You get a nice variety during the first five miles by starting at the stadium, hitting the bridge, going through Newport, and heading back over the river and into downtown.  I was feeling great and nailing some nice splits.  Here are the splits for the first five: 7:34, 7:44, 7:37, 7:24, and 7:20.

Miles 6-10: The downtown Cincinnati portion is always fun.  I like the experience of going through a major metropolitan downtown in the middle of the road.  It's not an experience you can have too often.  I felt good as we headed northeast out of downtown and into the hilly section of the course.  It's nothing major until about halfway through mile 6 when you get a gradual hill followed by some more pronounced inclines.  I love the section near Crohn Conservatory as you continue going up.  Once you peak the hill there is a leveling off during which you can see downtown.  It's very pretty in the morning, plus you know the worst of the hills are over.  There are few up-downs sprinkled in this section of town but nothing major.  Then you begin the descent back into town which is a great way to make up some time.  I kept my pace conservative during this section.  I crapped out some during the last mile in 2016 because I flew downhill during miles 10 and 11.  Here are the next five splits: 7:26, 7:38, 7:20, 7:08, and 7:28.

Miles 11-13.1: Still feeling great!  I figured at this point that a sub-1:40 was realistic and just wanted to bank some more time.  The last 5k went extremely fast and I still felt relatively good.  This portion is tough as you fly into downtown then have a strange little out and back on Fifth Street, I believe.  It's not long but it's an odd little section of the course.  I then made my way back south towards the river before heading west for the finish.  I kicked it in and actually hit a 6:35 during the final mile!  It felt great and I finished very hard.  The final splits were 7:01, 6:51 and 6:35.  Insanely fast at the end!  The course measured long at 13.4 miles, but I still cruised in for my best Pig at 1:37:40!  That took almost two minutes off my 2016 time.  I finished 225/12073 overall which is a great showing.

This makes half marathon number 69 for me.  Believe it or not, I haven't decided what my 70th half marathon will be.  I should probably decide soon as I'd like to get it in this summer.  Between now and then I have some 5ks planned.

Next race: Childhood Cancer 5k- Ontario, OH

Cooper Tire Centennial 5 Miler

I had a free Saturday and decided to see what races were out there.  There was nothing shorter than an hour away, so I chose this one in Findlay since I've ran numerous races in that city.  Plus a five miler is something totally different for me.  I had to look back at this blog to find the results for the 2012 Frostbite Five Miler, the only other one I've ran.  My time for that was 38:45 so I was very sure I would get a five miler PR at this one.

The race began and ended at the Findlay High School track which was a nice facility.  The weather, however, was way too cool for late April.  The temperature was in the low 40s with a strong wind.  I figured it would be breezy in pancake flat Findlay but it was more than expected.  It looked like we would have a nice tailwind going south but then vice versa on the way back on this out and back course.  The race wasn't the biggest, and there was a 5k attached, so I lined up in the fourth line or so for the start.

I felt great from the start and jumped into the top eight or so.  We headed south toward the Cooper Tire plant on a pretty straightforward course.  The wind wasn't terrible during the first half.  The first mile clicked by in a fast 6:33.  I passed a couple runners during the second mile, but it was tough to gauge where I was until the 5k runners turned around.  I saw three of them turn around and I knew I was in the top five.  The only hill was in this section but it wasn't much.  The second mile was a still fast 6:47 and I still felt great.

We turned east for a short jaunt by the tire plant before turning back around and heading back.  There's not much to report on as it's the same course in reverse.  I could tell I was actually in the top three at this point and knew I could hold it.  The third mile was a 6:55 and the fourth was a surprising 6:52.  I really felt that I slowed down slightly here due to the wind but I was wrong.  I finally started feeling the race as we started the fifth mile and headed back for a finish on the Findlay track.  I finished strong but didn't have anyone behind or in front of me to push me.  The final mile came in 6:55 and I finished with an overall time of 34:02.  That is a minute faster than I thought I could run on my best day!  I did indeed finish third overall and second in my age group.

This was a nice change of pace race that I really enjoyed.  The organization was great and there's not a thing I would change.  Next up is one of my favorite half marathons.

Next race: Flying Pig Half Marathon- Cincinnati, OH