Scioto Miles 10 Miler Race Recap

Yesterday I woke up at 4:50am to run a 10 mile "race." I'm feeling pretty achy today, but overall it was an improvement over the half marathon in May.

Bright and early!

Getting Ready
The race was point to point, so we had to take a bus from the finish line to the start. Because of this, everyone had to arrive an hour to an hour and a half before the 7:00AM start time. I was lucky to get to bed by 10 (I'm a night owl) and get a decent night's sleep, so waking up at 4:50 wasn't terrible.

I made a friend on the bus and we chatted until the race began. I recognized several people from other races and my running group, but it was nice to have someone to talk to to take my mind off any pre-race nerves.

The Run
I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel like walking after mile... 1? I was tired. There was a large (for Columbus) hill at the start and a few others in the first 4 miles. I realllllly need to start training on hills. I live in a relatively flat city, so a tiny 50 ft incline kills me.

I texted Alex during those first miles. I knew he'd be around mile 4.5 so, in addition to warning him that I was close, I also complained about the hills. ;) It was kind of fun to text and run. Maybe not the best idea for speed, but it was entertaining. I didn't have my phone during Cap City, so perhaps I was amused by the novelty of being able to text him.

Anyway, I passed him at mile 4.5. Just before that a few girls near me started to walk. I really wanted to join them, but I persevered and told myself to at least make it halfway. By this point, the field was spread out. I was between the 1:40 and 1:45 finish pace groups. My goal finish was 1:45, but I was feeling pretty good about my pace. Tired, but it seemed sustainable.

Around the 4.5 mile mark. Lots of pavement.

Around mile 5 we took a turn onto the bike path. It was gorgeous. The tree canopy was a welcome relief from the rising sun. I kept running. I didn't want to stop! (Ok, that might be a lie.) I was in a group of 4 or 5 runners with space between and I kept them in my sights. Around 6.5 I thought, "Maybe a 10k or quarter marathon is my optimal distance! I feel ok." Everything was going pretty well...

...Until mile 7 when we had to climb a hill to cross a bridge. Ouch. At the same time the 1:45 pace group passed me (10:30/mile). Bummer. According to Map My Run I was maintaining a just over 10 minute pace. I was confused.  By the time I got to mile 8 I was dead. Two girls in front of me started to walk. Then a really tall dude, then two other guys that looked fit. And then, I walked. I KNOW. Terrible. I walked an uphill and told myself that would be it. Unfortunately, I ended up walking a few uphills. In my defense, they were uphill and full sun. After the woods, I was not ready for the hot glare of the sun! I texted Alex, "8 had to walk." And he replied, "That's ok! Almost there!" How nice. I kept run/walking through mile 8, as did the three individuals near me. I wonder if they'd kept running would I have willed myself to follow? I'm not sure... I was pretty freaking tired.

So, mile 8 sucked. Mile 9 arrived and I told myself I had to run the whole thing. I walked a bit up a hill, but for the most part I kept myself going. As I turned the corner to the finish I had a little bit of energy left, so I picked up the pace. I didn't sprint in, but ran a little faster. As I crossed the line, the announcer said something about "there are still finishers on the course, cheer them on!" so I immediately knew I wasn't breaking any records. ;)

In a good mood at the end.

Reflection 
This was a FAST field of runners. This was a runners race. Generally if I run around a 10:00-10:30/mile I know my finishing place will be around 50% . I was 72% (330 out of 458)! The winner ran 10 miles in 54 minutes! I won't lie, it was a little disheartening, but only because I kept wondering how I'd do if I actually ran the whole thing.

I slacked off this summer. I didn't run all of my runs during the week and I've been avoiding challenging hills. The compressed training schedule to get ready for my upcoming 1/2 didn't help, but I'm still glad I ran this. I'd do it again next year.

It's weird that I don't run the whole time in these long races. I guess I need to work on the mental part of the run. Sure, I'm tired, but I think I need to jog a bit slower for a while instead of stopping. Once I stop, it's really hard for me to keep running consistently.

Time
I wanted a 1:45 finish. Well, really, I wanted a 1:43 finish. My official finish was 1:47.

Again, I'm kind of bummed because obviously those extra minutes were spent walking. I'm also confused because my Map My Run said I rain 10.41 miles at a 10:20 pace, while my official finish says I ran a 10:40 pace (I'm sure they're using 10.02 miles for distance). Am I taking the long way around a course? I know part of that accounts for the starting line, but was I really weaving that badly or did my app lie? I do weave around a bit, so perhaps I need to focus on taking the shortest path next race.

Sweet medal.

My mile splits

1 mi         09:43 min/mi

2 mi         10:00 min/mi

3 mi         09:59 min/mi

4 mi         10:12 min/mi

5 mi         10:22 min/mi

6 mi         10:34 min/mi

7 mi         09:56 min/mi

8 mi         10:17 min/mi

9 mi         11:39 min/mi (whoops)

10 mi       10:18 min/mi

10.4 mi    09:49 min/mi

Overall, I'm happy with the run. I'm still confused by Map My Run vs. reality, but whatever. I'll pretend I ran a 10:20 pace. ;) Pretty nervous about the 1/2 in 2 weeks considering I wanted to die around mile 8, but maybe I'll be in better shape...

At Home:
As I mentioned before, I'm achy, but feeling pretty good leg-wise. Unfortunately, I spent the day yesterday with a terrible stomach ache I couldn't do anything about. I ate a normal amount of food, but constantly felt like crap. Still feel like crap today. Apparently this is a thing some runners deal with (?!).

Next time

1. Run it all. (duh)
2. Do not skip any training runs during the week! 
3. Do not skimp on the distance of your training runs (lately I've gone 3.6 miles instead of 4, or 4.2 instead of 5. No bueno.)
4. Train on hills! It sucks. You'll have a slow time, but just do it to prep for races!
5. I probably ought to cross train... maybe I can focus on that later. ;) I run so I don't have to do anything else!

And this concludes another race round-up.