North Shore Turkey Trot 10k

My goal for this race was to PR (41:40). My training has been going very well lately, and I knew 41:40 was attainable. I thought more realistically I'd be between 40 - 41.

The race conditions were frigid. Temps at the start time were in the low 20s with single digit wind chills. This was the coldest Turkey Trot that I can recall. I met some friends and did a short warmup. I was feeling good, but anxious to run because it was so cold.

The gun went off, and I went out at a steady, comfortable pace. The first mile came out at 6:40. I was fine with this, but I was feeling good so I quickened my pace just slightly.

I really enjoyed the course with its rolling hills along the beautiful homes of Highland Park. Mile 2 came out at 6:33, and mile 3 was 6:42.

I was feeling strong and by the 5k mark I knew this would be a great race. I made a pretty big move, and picked up the pace significantly. But when mile 4 came out at 7:40 I knew the course was fucked up. This was frustrating, but I was still in a good zone. I tried not to let it upset me, and I wanted to make the most of the race.

Despite some hills in the last 2 miles, I was able to run hard. I went 6:21 and 6:17 in the last 2 miles. In the last half mile there was a steep downhill and I tried to carry that moment to the finish. I had a strong kick in the last quarter mile, and I passed a guy just 20m from the finish line.

Mile 1- 6:40
Mile 2- 6:33
Mile 3- 6:42
Mile 4- 7:40
Mile 5- 6:21
Mile 6- 6:17
0.2- 1:11

FINISH- 41:40

6/74 AG
28/1,265 OA

It was confirmed by the race organizers that the course was long and the lead biker took a wrong turn. This was frustrating, but I ended up running 6:26 pace. I can't be upset with that.

I also had a great time with family and friends, so overall it was a big win.

Autobahn 5k

My goal for this race was to PR (19:02). I felt confident I could do that. In fact, I thought I'd blow 19:02 out of the water. I thought 18:30 was possible.  I also thought I had a chance to win this race. The winning times for the past three years were 19:02, 20:03 and 18:53.

The race took place on a Formula 1 type race track (think twisty). It was about 1 hour outside of Chicago. I went with 6 other people from my Lululemon run group. They're great people and we had a lot of fun.

I did a 2 mile warm up, some drills, and some sprints. I was feeling good. And for weeks I had been confident leading up to the race. It was 50 degrees at the start, which was surprisingly warm for the season. But it was so damn windy... 22 mph according to the internet.

The gun went off and 4-5 guys jumped out to the lead. They were kids! High schoolers. So little, but so damn fast. I let them go, and just tried to find my rhythm. I was looking for quarter miles of 1:30 but I hit the first .25 in 1:20, so I eased off.

I was surprised that I started breathing heavily and feeling fatigued shortly before I reached the 1st mile marker. It seemed too early for that. But the first mile came out to 6:00 and I thought, "OK, I can probably hang onto this". But I wrong. The wind during all of mile 2 was BRUTAL. It wasn't gusts of wind, it was a steady stream of intense wind.

At the halfway point I was feeling some intense fatigue. My breathing was so labored and I had to fight to hold onto a pace that was already slower.  It was a real struggle and it hurt badly. The 2nd mile came out at 6:23. This was a big blow, and really frustrating. But I kept fighting, and I started to make a push in the last mile.

The intensity was off the charts at this point, but I was able to run faster. The wind wasn't as bad in the 3rd mile. I closed the gap on a little booger up a head of me. This kid was as tall as my waist, but those little legs moved with quickness and fluidity. I passed him with a quarter mile to go. I talked to him and his dad after the race. He's 12 years old and finished in 19:10. Kid probably has a very bright future in the sport.

I kicked as hard as I could for the last 1:30 of the race, but it wasn't much because I was so exhausted. I knew 19:00 would be close. As I approached the finish line I watched the clock tick from 18:59 to 19:00 and I crossed the finish line in frustration.

Mile 1- 6:00
Mile 2- 6:23
Mile 3- 5:52
0.1- 0:48

FINISH- 19:05 (6:10 pace)

1st AG
5th OA

I'm pretty bummed about this race. I expected to do so much better. I'm not sure how I recently ran the last 5k of a 15k in 20:13, but could only muster 19:05 for 5k today. Maybe it just wasn't my day. Maybe it was the strong winds in mile 2. But I was so certain that I'd run well today.

It makes me question what I'm capable of. I love this distance, and I have dreams of becoming very fast at it. But today makes me question whether I have the genetic makeup and talent to take this where I wanna go.  I may have to train my ass off just to run mediocre times.

This won't be a set back. I'll keep training and I'll do whatever I can to live up to my potential. But it's a potential which I'm now skeptical about.