Last Friday night (February 21, 2020) I participated in the Freeze Out 5k to End Homelessness to benefit the Rescue Mission Alliance of Syracuse. This is the seventh year participating and the race just keeps getting better and better every year.
I went into this having put some time in training, but not enough to make it feel like I was going to run strong. All of my training runs just felt like crap. Mostly mid to upper 9-minute splits and that’s just not what I’m used to seeing. I get it I took about 6 months off from any type of physical workout, but it’s hard to break that mental expectation.
I decided that I would just take it easy, and any finish under 30-minutes was my goal. I mean c’mon, the course isn’t flat and it’s wintertime so what can I really expect? I took off at the start and I always go out too fast. The adrenaline of it being a race, and others around me tend to make that happen. I just wanted to ride it out and see what would happen. First mile was an 8:45 pace. Considering there is a decent incline in that first mile I was extremely happy with that. Again I just kept putting one foot in front of the other and not stopping. The second mile ticked off at an 8:23 pace. Now that second mile had some nice declines to help with the pace, but I knew I was going to struggle to finish the race strong. Once again focusing on just putting one foot in front of the other, and trying to stay close to some of the runners around me, I completed the third mile in an 8:53 pace. Slow, but no complaints. At this point in the race you’re on a decline headed into the final turn and finishers chute. I rounded that corner and used that decline to propel me forward. I’m not usually someone who sprints into the finish. I like to go hard on the course and just finish strong because overall that typically means a faster run overall. Anyways, there was a male runner just up ahead of me and something came over me to catch him and pass him. I started sprinting. My eyes caught the race clock and I saw 26:50-something. I just kept sprinting. At that moment I wanted to finish under 27 so badly. My foot hit at exactly 27:00. With an actual time of 26:47 and an 8:42 pace, I set a Personal Race Record.
Apparently I need to go into every race with zero expectations! It’s been awhile since I’ve felt so happy and proud of myself after a race. Basically reminded me of why I keep coming back for more race after race.
Next race up is the Tipp Hill Shamrock run. After running 5 miles yesterday I felt really great. My goal for this next race will be to not walk. There are some killer hills that can stop many in their tracks. I’m hoping they don’t get the best of me this year.
#loveinaction #endhomelessness