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

Sugarcreek 5 Miler

I wanted to do one last race sponsored by the Ohio River Road Runners Club (read: well organized and free for members) and this one couldn't have been better! It was held in the ever-popular Sugarcreek Metro Park near Bellbrook. The technical trails made for a very interesting trail race. Thankfully, the footing was a lot better than during the torrential rains we had at the Twin Creek 10k. But it was still a race full of uphills, downhills, tree roots, and rocks.

I went straight to the park after work and was very glad I did. The parking lot was almost full a good hour before the race start. The race organizers told us that there were two other group activities going on at the same time, which didn't surprise me considering the popularity of Sugarcreek. I had plenty of time to drink some water and stretch out. The stretching out was especially important due to my lack of sufficient training. I was really just looking for a nice workout for my last race in the Dayton area.

I don't have any split times as it's difficult to mark miles at a trail race. We started out with some technical trail right off the bat. A winding downhill greeted us at the start, followed by some winding paths. The hills weren't terrible but you could tell they were there. I started off at a conservative pace and simply ramped it up a bit on the downhills. Overall, I felt great! A tough section came around at roughly two miles in when we ran a winding downhill, crossed a stream by jumping on rocks, and then making our way uphill. The uphill was awkard because it was steep and narrow. Some runners tried running to the side, while others attempted to climb up using some huge rocks. This is the kind of stuff that makes trail running fun. You can't simply zone out and go. You have to look down and constanly watch where you are going. The halfway point was well marked, so we could get a sense of where we were on the course. I still felt pretty good but had an issue arise just past the half way mark. A rock had found its way into one of the grooves on the bottom of my shoe and was hitting the ball of my foot. It hurt quite a bit so I considered stopping. For about a second. My time was still good and I could still run on it so I tried to forget about it. Note to those reading this blog- Don't do that! Just stop and take the rock out. My foot was hurting for a few days after the race.  The second half was easier than the first half and I finished strong with a 41.27.  Surprisingly, that was good enough for third in my age group, so I'm 3/3 placing in trail races.  I will greatly miss these ORRRC races, but I'm excited to run new races in the NW Ohio area.

Next race- Either Team Jenny 5k or Run with the Little Giants 5k, both in Fremont.

Frostbite 5 Miler

I decided to make this my first race of 2012 for a couple reasons- 1) The weather in Ohio has been very nice this winter and today was no exception.  Low 40s and sunny.  Perfect running weather.  2) I joined the Ohio River Road Runners Club and most of their races are free for members.  No brainer.  3) 5 miles is a nice distance to test where I am and to prepare for the Augusta Half Marathon in three weeks.

I didn't come in thinking that I would necessarily race this one more than use it as a tuneup for Augusta.  I went out fairly easy in the first mile, which went around Centerville High School and made its way through the surrounding neighborhood.  Pretty level first mile and I clocked in around 8:17.  The second mile started with a downhill followed by a twisting uphill.  I really liked this course because of all the elevation changes.  I prefer courses with some rolling hills as it works more of the leg muscles than a flat course.  My time was slightly faster for the second mile and I was at 16:20.  For coming out easy, I really felt that I was running a nice pace and kicked it up slightly during mile 3.  More uphills during this miles we continued making our way through some of the local neighborhoods.  I was at 24:10 at mile 3 and was on pace to run a race of nothing but negative splits.

We ran a loop around one neighborhood for mile 4 and I was staying at a good pace.  I kept reeling people in and passing them and felt surprisingly good.  There was one killer hill as we started the final mile and I passed a few people here.  Then we made it back towards the high school and I finished hard, passing five people in the last 200 meters, and clocked in at 38:45.  I came in just looking to run this in 42-43 minutes, so I'll take it.

Next race: Augusta Half Marathon- Augusta, GA