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The Wilds EcoThon - Run10k


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Cumberland, Ohio
United States
The Wilds
50F / 10C
Overcast
Total Time = 56m 1s
Overall Rank = 32/88
Age Group =
Age Group Rank = 4/6
Pre-race routine:

Woke up around 8 to leave home at 8:30 for a 10 AM start. Last year for this race we left home at 8; that was really too early. They urge people to get there by 9 and they SAY that they're closing registration at 9, but it's not really true.

The new wrinkle on the course this year was that they've moved the start line a half mile back from previous starts -- moving it up the hill to the main lodge. So we arrived a little after 9, picked up race packets, made last-minute clothing decisions, and then caught a shuttle bus from the parking lot up to the main lodge so we could start.

Event warmup:

Jogged around, light stretching.
Run
  • 56m 1s
  • 6.21 miles
  • 09m 01s  min/mile
Comments:

Okay, so: the big story here was hills hills hills, and I did well but not great. I'd like to start doing great.

The new start was up at the top of the hill, under overcast skies. The 5Kers and 10Kers mass start together, and it was a mad dash down that hill about a half mile to where the previous year's race started. That first mile was just crazy fast for me -- about a 6:50 mile, far faster than my target 8 for the start. I knew the hills were coming, and I wanted to save energy for that. But the downhill slope and the crowd had me running a very fast first mile.

Once into the second mile things slowed down, out on a single-track course mowed into the grass, winding around lakes and up and down hills. This is when I started just slogging through this. My mile times went up up and up, but I wasn't too concerned; my goal here was really just to finish with a respectable time, and not to kill myself on the hills. Of course, once I finished the race, I wished I had run faster; but out on the course, I was just slogging along.

By my count there's 5 major hills on this course, along with some wicked downhills. Hill 4 is the heartbreaker, though 3's no cupcake. They're the kind of hills that you can stretch out your hands and help pull yourself up, like a ladder. Hell of a hill. Last hill was, I think, a new addition to the course, and was a sideways-up-the-hill kinda deal. Not a vertical as hill 4, but it was LAST and so it was a killer.
What would you do differently?:

Run faster. I think I may be approaching my first major mental limiter. Up until now, my ability to competently complete my chosen races has been my limiter. In other words, my fitness and endurance. But I've successfully completed MOP finishes in all my chosen distances now -- 5K, 10K, half mary, sprint tri, oly tri. Now's the time to run FASTER; to stop husbanding my energy for the possibility that I might not be able to finish the race, because clearly I can finish the race.

Time to run FASTER.
Post race
Warm down:

Ate stuff. Listened to awards. Shook out my legs.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Mental toughness.

Event comments:

The 10th anniversary run -- lots of fun, lots of freaky runners attracted to the toughness of the hills.




Last updated: 2007-04-28 12:00 AM
Running
00:56:01 | 06.21 miles | 09m 01s  min/mile
Age Group: 4/6
Overall: 32/88
Performance: Average
mile 1 06:57 180 mile 2 09:00 181 mile 3 09:10 180 mile 4 09:10 180 mile 5 10:42 182 mile 6 09:21 186
Course: Very, very hilly single-track course, mowed into the grass. New start is a downhill asphalt grade for half mile; 5 major hills spaced throughout.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Ok
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks?
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 3

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2007-04-29 8:57 AM

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Master
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La Crosse
Subject: The Wilds EcoThon


2007-04-29 6:19 PM
in reply to: #780355

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Extreme Veteran
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northeast Ohio
Subject: RE: The Wilds EcoThon

Ok, first, you woke up at 8 and left at 8:30?  How do you people do that?  I've got to be up a couple hours before I leave.  Yeesh!

Well executed race if you ask me!  Solidly FOMOP and only a couple spots from BOFOP.  Very cool!  I know you know this, but each race is a learning experience.  You ARE learning mental toughness.  It will be there when you least expect it. 

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