Truly puzzled by this one. In a good way. I have been struggling with knee injuries since November, and have barely done any running, and even biking has been lower volume and intensity than I'd want. My goal was merely to take things steady and to test out the knees, probably aiming to maintain a little under 7 min/mile, and running as gingerly as possible on the downhills. I hadn't the faintest expectation that I'd run 6:14/miles, easily beating my fastest time for our annual neighborhood race. And due to the steady start, it was the most even pacing I have ever managed for the race. The 6:17, 6:20 splits for the first 2 miles are probably not to be taken too seriously.

Nothing. The steady pacing and shortened stride may have really helped me.

Dancing with the kids at the post-race party. While wondering whether I should take away from this that I can race more after all, or whether I'm doing long-term damage to my knees by running.


Doing barely any run training for the past 5 months.


It's not a flashy race, and certainly not an opportunity to run a personal best time - the hills can be quite draining. But it's a really fun neighborhood event, a fundraiser for the local elementary school. Much of the fun is associated with the kids' races, and the post race dance party on the school yard.