So I towed the line not really knowing what to expect. I ran 19:25 last year but I haven't really done a lot of focused speed work for 5Ks at all. My focus over the winter was marathon training so it was really all endurance stuff. I figued going in that I'd be happy with anything under 20, and would likely expect to be around 19:30.

The course changed a bit this year in that they removed a little piece in the middle where we ran down 9th street and and did a 180 turn before getting back on Penn Ave. This year they added the distance at the beginning and end, where we now basically round a city block going out and coming back. So the start and finish is a bit technical in that you take 3 pretty quick turns before you get on a straight stretch for a while.

The horn sounded and we were off. I just tried to get clear of the obviously slower runners in the first stretch and got good line on the first 3 turns so I got out pretty well. I needed to be mind full of my pace as you all know, its easy to go out way too fast. I was shooting for mile splits around 6:15 and at first look I was doing OK, but it seemed like the front pack was moving a bit too fast. By the time I settled in and hit the first mile mark I came in at 5:47. Oh oh, that's a bit too fast, I hope that doesn't come back to bite me in arse. Thankfully we have a few more quick corners as we round another city block, I should be able to ease up a bit here to get back on pace.

Rounding the corners I felt good I could notice that my pace was a bit slower and I wasn't "losing" anyone in front of me. The race had pretty well sorted itself out at this point and I was feeling pretty good. Running down Penn Ave was pretty open and you could pretty much see everyone in front of you. By my best guess the race was a bit more competitive this year, it seemed like I was farther back in the pack and the race leaders were further ahead. Mile 2 came in at 6:22 so I was pretty much back on pace but coming up to the 180 degree turn just past mile 2 my suspicions were confirmed. I counted 23 people in front of me and there were a good 3 or 4 folks that were pretty clear of the rest of us (all ended up finishing in 16:XX). Ahead of me was a group of 4 or 5 folks that were pretty well clustered not more than a few steps apart. This is what I figured my target would be, if I wanted to pick up a few places and go top 20 I needed to catch (and pass) this group. Only problem was that about 2.25 - 2.5 I started to get my infamous diaphragm cramp (I hate these things). This forced me to slow for a bit to try to work it out. My pace at this point had actually dropped to over 7 m/m... I was in trouble.

From about 2.5 to 2.75 the course went uphill back towards the finish, by the base of the hill my cramp had pretty much been put into check, but I was now more than a step or two off the group I was chasing. I figured my only hope was that someone (or everyone!) crashed on the hill. But it was not to be. I held pretty strong but so did everyone else, just past the top of the hill was mile 3, which came in at 6:54... that cramp really killed my time. Up ahead was the three quick turns to the finish and I just put everything I had into it and crossed the line at 19:17.

Ironically the group I was chasing all came in between 19:02 and 19:06. Had I been able to catch them on the flat I just might have been able to race for sub 19 in the final kick, but oh well I'm still happy with my time.

Nothing.

Walked around for a bit. Cheered some folks in at the finish line. Then an easy jog back to my truck.


The diaphragm cramp that started to come on at the 2 mile mark slowed me up some. The next minute or so working this out slowed my pace to over 7:00 m/m so this cost me some time, otherwise I really think I had a shot to go sub 19.