10k race of awesome

This once a week post shit is getting old. Finding it hard to come up with any time or anything to post about. I suppose that happens when my entire life right now is only about my family and work. And since I can't post about either of those things... Well, at least I have my running.

Over time, running has become my primary, if not only, form of stress relief. I still find some solace in video games, but by and large, running is the better of the two in terms of the ratio of hours spent to amount of stress relieved. Another interesting fact is that the amount of running I do and the extent to which I push myself harder is usually directly proportional to the amount of stress I'm currently under.

I had a 10k race today. To say I've had a lot of stress recently would be quite the understatement. So this morning I set out with a goal to run pretty damn hard. Leave mine, and everyone elses stress out there on the road. And I did. Here is a mile by mile recount:

Mile 1: Started 3 rows back from the start. People didn't stop passing me until mile 1 was over, and I was doing a 6:30 - 6:40 pace.

Mile 2: At 1.77, I passed someone, the first of maybe 4 or 5 total. No more people passing me. Still feeling pretty good. Race is early, starting to doubt I can keep this pace up. Heart rate is already pushing "hard" zones.

Mile 3: Little harder now, wind picked up on the far side of the lake. Had to push to keep my pace up. Keeping pace with 120 lbs, 5'4" woman wearing TCRC (Twin Cities Running Club) shirt.

Mile 4: The "not quite done, but damn I need to quit" mile. Mile 4 is always the hardest on my 10k fast races. I came damn close to slowing down multiple times. Pushed through each time. Finished 1 second faster than mile 3. Passed woman wearing TCRC shirt.

Mile 5: Wind at my back again, that helped alot. Heartrate now in the "danger" zone, staying at basically maximum heart levels (220 - age = maximum HR). But no way I'm slowing now, not after coming this far.

Mile 6: The home stretch. Time to book it now. Nearest person in front or behind me, well over 100 feet. With no one around me, I already knew the announcer would say my name. That old bearded guy that announces every race. Wonder what his name is?

Finished way better than I had hoped or set out to. 42:32, average pace of 6:46. My GPS watch said I traveled a total distance of 6.29. Enjoyed a banana, bottle of water, then ran another 5 miles. Couldn't help myself, it was just too nice out.