Running With Jack

The race started at 9:15 a.m. so we picked up our friend Eva on the way the race. I went to pick up my start number and the girls picked up coffee and found a place to park until while I ran.

After going through the normal race routine I made my way to the Start line to cheer on the 10K racers who started at 9 a.m.. It was just beginning to rain a little as we began the race, but lasted only a couple minutes, then the sun came out again.

There were around 400 people signed up for the HM, I recognized a lot of faces from previous races. I chatted with a man who has run the Fidelitas Night Run for the last 10 years in the row. He assured me that the race is easier than a marathon. This is relative as he is a running machine.

So after a few minutes we were off. I held down the pace for the first 14K/8.7M, about my normal tempo run speed (5:30/K, 8:50/M).

I love this race, it is flat, almost entirely through the forest and probably 70% packed dirt trails. I set my HM personal record (1:48:12) on this course last September.

At the 14K point was an aid station and right after this a 5 minute stretch of asphalt-covered bike trails. I had been following a couple who were doing a comfortable pace and at this point they poured on the gas. I decided to hang with them for awhile. They kept going faster and faster and I guess my competitive juices started flowing, cause next thing I new I totally forgot about this being 'just a training run' and I left them behind me.

For the rest of the race I kept up the pace passing a couple dozen people before sprinting over the finish line. I ended up finishing in 1:49:39, about a minute and a half slower than my best time, but much faster than I planned.

I came in 235th out of 378, 53/76 in my age group. Not bad for braking the first 2/3 of the race. I just hope my legs will forgive me...