32:44 - 11th OA, 3rd AG
It has been a couple of years since I have run anything shorted than a marathon. The Gary Bjorkland 1/2 Marathon for the 1st shorter effort and this was the 2nd. I was looking forward to the race as my wife and girls were coming along and doing the 2 mile race. They have a little carnival in town and we planned to have a little post race fun.
Temps on the way to the race ranged from 96-100 degrees. We arrived in Pittsville 45 minutes early to a temperature of 96 and it was fairly humid. I think this race has as many people in the 2 and 5 mile combined as the population of the town ~ 700+.
I tried to warm up ~ 3 miles pre-race ... I did 3 miles of slow jog with some a bunch of striders. I think this was a mistake as it just made me over heat. I think I would have been better sitting in the air conditioned car and coming out 5 minutes pre-race to jog to the start line.
The national anthem was very well done by a trumpet player and we were off. With the heat, I started off at a very comfortable race pace - I figured running well within myself for 3 miles and pushing the last 2 was a good plan. About 400 meters into the race I saw my friend Alex who I have battled 3 other years - But today he was running with a friend and I did not have to worry about getting beat.
I did not wear a watch as I did not want to be tortured with my slowness on this hot night. We hit mile #1 and someone called out 6:24 ~ Wow was that slow. I had my eyes fixed on Jay - A good 50 year old runner that I like to beat, he was 15 seconds ahead of me.
I just tried to relax and be smooth and comfortable - By mile #2 I was leaving sweat footprints and my insides felt baked, but I felt in control. Mile #3 I was still around 15 seconds behind Jay but gaining. Although I was really hot and miserable, I thought I still had it in control with my relaxed stride.
Mile #4 I just tried to hold onto the relaxed stride, but I was starting to get a bit light headed and having a hard time getting enough oxygen. At the mile #4 mile marker I had pulled within 1-2 seconds of Jay and just wanted to hold on to the end.
Right after that things went south fast, I was cooked. I tried to slow down for a little bit, but that gave no relief. for the 1st time ever in a short race, I walked. After approximately 40 seconds of walking I felt able to get back into running. From the time that they had called out at mile #4, I think I made a 7 minute mile the last mile (With walking), so my pace was reasonable.
Afterward I found my family and had 50 ounces of water, 8 slices of watermelon and some homemade granola. I was still pretty dizzy - But foolishly started on the free beer. It took almost an hour to calm down enough to stand without being dizzy.
After many free beers and the awards ceremony - We headed to the little carnival. I took the girls on the tilt-a-whirl. Not the best choice after beer and being dehydrated (I get nauseated anyway). I survived but could not enjoy any fair food.
It ended up being a pretty fun family experience - Now we can all remember when we all ran that really hot race - Way back in 2012.
Good running to all -
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