This race is always challenging because of the massive number of people. Regularly having to dodge people.

I lined up with the sub-8 minute milers for the start. THis was a lot better than the 10 minute milers from a year ago. Less idiots in the way.

First mile was gentle as crowd moved. I timed it at 9 minutes. I was definitely aerobic throughout. Very comfortable and conversational.

Mile 2, I picked up the pace. I tried to make good use of the slight downhill and let gravity do its thing. This mile I finished at the 17 minute mark, so I ran it in 8 minutes. This is a personal best mile time and I was definitely moving in the anaerobic zones. HR was in the mid to upper 150s.

Mile 3, I scaled back to let my breath settle some. I ran some on the grass even though it was squishy. My feet were getting a bit sore at the 22 minute mark. My HR was still in the low 150s, but I felt more in control of my breath. I passed the 3 mile marker at a bit over 9 minutes.

I picked up my pace for the last half mile. Really tried to focus on my form. But I started too soon and had to scale back some. I did push for the last couple hundred yards and finished strong.

My overall time of 30:05 is 3:25 faster than last year, or almost a full minute/mile faster. My average pace of an 8:31 mile is over 30 seconds faster than my previous personal best run pace. I am really encouraged by my improved run times so far this year. For not being able to run much due to plantar fasciitis, these improvements are really exciting to me.

Not much. Beat my personal best by a full 30 seconds per mile.