Hot Chocolate 15K Dallas

Distance: 9.3 miles
Chip Time: 1:27:12
Watch Time: 1:27:24
Pace: 9:19 min/mi

Comments: The first race in quite some time for me and I went in with pretty conservative expectations. Just get it done. Nothing fancy. Negative split if at all possible.

I started pretty slow, partially due to the congestion at the start of the course. There were a lot more folks in this race than I expected and some of the turns were pretty tight. No biggie.

For the first 5K I just kept it at a slow comfortable pace, hitting it at just over 10 min/mi. A ton of folks passed me but that was fine. The only times I sped up was to get in front of the morons wearing speakers. It turned out that a lot of the first third of the course was uphill, so my strategy was even more sound than I expected.

For the second 5K I still kept it in my comfort zone but focused more on cadence. The course crested in this portion and I started riding noticeable downhills. I crossed the 10K mark with a 9:45 min/mi overall pace.

The last 5K was all about pushing it a bit. I increased both cadence and effort to not-quite-race-pace level. The first and second mile of this 5K were at 8:40 min/mi pace. For the final mile, I tried to get at race pace effort -- my goal was to ensure nobody passed me through this part. This mile was under 8:30 pace.

I finished with a pretty good time (90 minutes was my ballpark guess for a solid race). My legs didn't feel wiped out afterward but were definitely tired from the effort. I didn't make any major mistakes like going out WAY too fast. Overall, a very solid effort.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4.05 miles
Time: 39:13
Pace: 9:40 min/mi

Comments: I was not keen on running in a possible sleet storm so nixed the possibility of a workout on Wednesday given the forecast. Turned out we just got cold rain. The skies cleared today by noon and, though it was a bit brisk with the wind, it wasn't an awful day to run.

Got delayed at the start helping a guy catch his dog that got loose but no biggie. Really tried to keep it relaxed but found myself pushing it on a few occasions. About a fifth of the run was in Zone 5 -- a bit longer than necessary given the race on Saturday.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4.02 miles
Time: 38:42
Pace: 9:37 min/mi

Comments: When I left for work, the temperatures were in the 60s. When I got home for lunch and ready to head out for the run, they had dropped almost 20 degrees. Good times.

The forecast of sleet and wintry weather was revised to push the bad stuff to the late afternoon and  evening if at all. So the lunch run was the only window to get it done.

I probably ran this one too fast due to the cold but, in honesty, it felt pretty good. I had a solid effort and didn't feel drained after finishing.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4.03 miles
Time: 40:51
Pace: 10:08 min/mi

Comments: Made it out for a lunch run, so that part went as planned. I knew it was going to be a little bit of a challenge because of the run yesterday. It turned out to be a bit more than I expected.

My legs felt tired (but not sore) pretty much from the start. I tried focusing on cadence but it just got kind of sloppy the further I got into it. By the last mile I was back to the slogging through it from a month ago. Needless to say, the last hill was not pleasant at all.

Long Run

Distance: 6:18 miles
Time: 1:00:54
Pace: 9:51 min/mi

Comments: Despite dang near perfect weather, the four miles yesterday didn't happen given the amount of shit that had to be done around the house. So the six miles for today had to happen.

Like my last few runs, I simply focused on cadence and holding the effort steady the whole way. About two thirds of this run was Zone 4, a pretty good long distance pace. I guess the Zone 5 was the hills.

With cold weather predicted next week, tomorrow and Tuesday might have to be run days.