Race: Liberty 10KWatch Time: 53:21
Official Time: 53:19
Pace: 8:35 min/mi
Comments: The goal of this race was to get a gauge of where I am at to better set my pacing as I go into marathon training. My personal goal was to go sub 50:00 but that turned out to be a bit unrealistic given the conditions.
Weather could have been worse. Temperatures dropped a bit overnight from the ridiculous recent highs. Still, it was plenty hot. And since the race started a good hour after I have been wrapping up my daily runs, I had to contend with sun. This took it's toll on the second half of the race when the shade wasn't available.
I started out hard. Usually this is inadvisable but I was deliberately pushing things. I didn't let my breathing get labored so I was hoping I had it under control. And, for the most part I did... through the 5K. I'm guessing my 5K time was right around 24:00 which would have been 7:45 pace. That's what I was hoping for the full 10K.
After three miles I began slowing considerably. I lost about 30 seconds each mile after that point. There was no break from sun and things were pretty miserable. I struggled with the impulse to walk at several points over the last two miles. And it was not easy to keep from giving in.
The 53:19 official time is still almost four minutes better than the 10K I did back in February with only a month of running under my belt. Temperatures were better for racing but the hills were an ugly complication I didn't have today. I think the bottom line is I have a lot of work to build stamina over the next few months if I am serious about this marathon effort.
Note: Mileage and pacing for the week will include the one mile warm up at 10:57.
Conditions
Hour: 8:05 a.m.
Surface: concrete/dirt trail
Weather: clear
Temperature: 82 degrees
Humidity: 66 percent
Wind: calm
Location: The Colony, Texas
Shoes: Saucony Triumph ISO 4
Injury update: My left ankle was sore on the two rest days although it improved as time passed. I didn't have any issues with it during the race.