Today's task: 10 miles at 8:59 min/mi (marathon pace + 45)
Today's weather: 42 degrees, raining, 20 mph+ north winds
Today's outcome: 10 miles in a PR of 1:17:52 (7:47 min/mile pace)
4th place 35-39 females (out of 194)
31st place females (out of 1106)
139th overall (out of 1889)
Christmas came a little early for me this year in the form of a top 10 finish for my age group...FINALLY!!! I've been wanting to bust in to the top 10 for a J&A race for quite some time now, but have never been able to put up the numbers. The old bats in 35-39 have simply been faster. With so much on my plate and on my mind right now, I just wanted to go out and have a good, strong run. The weather was craptastic, and since I had to put in the miles today anyway, I was glad I got to run with a couple thousand of right jolly old elves instead of by myself like I normally do.
It sounded like the end of the world when the alarm went off this morning, with monsoon-like rain being driven against my bedroom window by fierce north winds. But feeling the running gods on my side today, there was a break in the rain that was long enough for us to warm up without getting drenched. Race time came along and it started raining again, and the deluge continued for the first 3 or 4 miles. A good chunk of the race had us running north on the boardwalk, and I think the fact that I was able to maintain pace despite the wind is what earned me my 4th place finish. I kept this tall chick and old dude in my sights and made sure they didn't get too far ahead. I was neck and neck with another chick for miles 7-8.5, but managed to pull ahead once we headed south and never looked back. Right around mile 9.5, I had my eye on this one girl who seemed passable, and I made it my mission to get ahead of her before the home stretch. I took a quick glance at my watch before the final turn to the finish line and saw that I could maybe finish under 1:18 and let the afterburners kick in. Felt great to finish strong, and once I found the hubster, my brother, and his wife (who were watching my kids and brought them to the afterparty), I changed into some dry clothes and whet my whistle with some chicken tortilla soup and Sam Adams Winter Lager. One of our favorite local bands was playing for what was by far my favorite post-race party to date...even at 9am, Strictly Bizzness puts on a great show!
After a hot shower and a little catnap, I'm ready to get back to the Fancy, perhaps with a nice fire roaring in the fireplace. I might even take off my finisher's medal.
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