I didn't know what to think about this race heading into it. I signed up for it because I needed one last race of the season. Usually the Souper Run (the first Sunday in November) is my last race, but I thought I was going to miss it this year. The good news is that I made it back home very early that morning and decided to run it. So that made the New Balance Girls on the Run of SE Michigan my final race of 2010.
I signed up for the race because it was fairly close to my home and on a Sunday. The round trip was about 80 miles. That is the longest I've driven for a race, outside of a half marathon. This race was an non-competitive fun run. No times to take or slips to rip off your bib. Even though the race was non-competitive, I wanted to set a new PR (personal record).
Since the time wasn't being kept, it was hard to gage how fast I was going. I did wear a watch, but I never looked at it during the race. It was buried underneath my coat and glove. I thought I was doing good. I was near the front for the entire race.
Around mile 2, a guy caught up to me. We ran side-by-side for the rest of the race. I was thinking with less then a half mile to go, "will I have enough left to out kick him?" Unfortunately the answer was no. When we made the final turn leading up to the finish line, the distance between us grew. I couldn't find another gear. Once I crossed the finish line, I finally looked at my watch. My watch read: 25:01:84. I let out a loud, "YES!" and a worker asked me if I ran a good time. I replied I did. I know it wasn't official, but I finished 9th overall.
If I knew how close I was to going under 25 minutes for the first time, I would have tried harder to sprint to the end. Since I just barely missed it, it gives me something to work on over the winter. My running goals are to run a 7:30 mile (my high school best) and get under 25 minutes for a 5K. I hope to accomplish both of them in 2011.
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