This was the second year for this young race in my very small town. I won this race last year with a time of 20:12 (I think). I have been feeling very sluggish for the past week, and didn't know what to expect.
The morning was cool and foggy. I woke my boys early enough so that we could go to the donut store and get some pre-race carbs.
The kid's 1 mile started at 8:00AM. My boys (8 and 9) ran the fun run last year, and really enjoyed it. I stayed with my younger son for his race. He's been sick this week, and I was a little worried about him. We ended up finishing the 1.15 mile course in about 14 minutes -- lots of walk breaks. My older boy finished 4th overall...and between the two of them they placed 2nd and 3rd in the the 7-9 yr age group!
At 8:30, the 5K started. Within the first 1/4 mile, most of the kids who sprinted from the starting line dropped out, or slowed. I was in 4th place going up the incline behind 2 HS boys and 1 HS girl. By the time we reached the 1/2 mile point, I was in 2nd place, following a HS boy. He had a pretty good pace, so I just let him lead the pace. I let him stay about 80 feet ahead of me, as we continued in to the fog.
As we reached the 1/2 way point I grabbed a quick drink and maintained my 80 ft 2nd place location. At this point as we headed back, we could see the rest of the field. Nobody was particulary close..so it looked like a 2 person race for the finish. At this point I was pretty resigned to 2nd place. I hadn't had a very good week, and I knew the guy in front of me was not in my AG -- so I figured, if I just keep running I'll get first in my AG.
But, just as I was thinking those negative thoughts, we started climbing a little incline. The guy in front of me slowed a little and put his arms behind his head, as if to try to catch his breath. Hmmm...an opening. I kept my pace fairly constant and the gap closed.
I passed him with about 1/2 mile of gradual downhill to go. I really like running downhill, and I didn't look back.
I ended up winning the 2nd Annual Porcupine Promenade in 20:18 (6:32/mi) ! (I defended my title, and even though I was a few seconds slower than last year, I still retain the course record! :)
I like small races -- I know at many races my time might not even take home any AG hardware. I enjoyed the small-town race, and the time I could spend with my boys!
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