PERVASIVE 10 MILER

Goals for this morning's 10 mile hilly test were: (1) 1:28:31, my 10 mile PR set last year at this race, (2) 1:25:41 (8:34 pace), my "predicted" result for 10 miles based on my 3:59:59 Freescale goal time, which is admittedly a soft marathon goal right now, and (3) crazy goal of 8:15 pace, or 1:22:30, which matches more my 10K time on the predictor tables. On this course, all this goal setting is sort of silly, but it would be cool to get one of those today. Race plan was to go out relaxed at something like 8:30 pace, get up Scotland Wells without going totally into oxygen debt, take advantage of the downhills in the hilly section, and then "Go!" once the course levels out just past the 6.5 mile mark, hoping for fast miles coming home.

We got the gift of nice cool weather for this year's running at Pervasive, which was a big bonus. Last year was a nightmare in that regard, and it was great to not have to worry about outside conditions for a change. The Gazelles met up at the start line for our warmup at 6:30am, after the most serpentine drive to a parking area that I've encountered. It got really funny really fast making these snaking turns as we toured around the Pervasive complex, but I got my favored spot near the tennis courts nonetheless. I used the race shirt as an overshirt for the warmup jog, since it was pretty cool (low 60's?), and we took off at a really easy pace with Gilbert. Covered something like 1.6 miles, mainly so we could run both the first and last pieces of the course and pick out landmarks. Once we did the drills and a few really short striders, we had a nice warmup going. A little stretching as a group, and some last words from Gilbert, and we were off to our separate corners to get pumped up. G's advice mainly centered around the fact that this is such an extreme course, that we shouldn't get hung up on our times if we happen to be a little slower than we would like.

Alex had temporarily forgotten where he had parked his car, so he dropped his warmup gear at my truck, and we both took advantage of the fine landscape screening around the tennis courts for a last hydration adjustment. (I know, we're bad, but hey...). I settled in with Amy and Shannon and Jennifer, and took a GU about 15 minutes prior to the start of the race. About half a bottle of water with that, and I was ready to run. Nervous, but ready. I think the same lady from last year sang the Anthem, good job again, and mercifully without too many words from the sponsors, etc., the horn went off promptly on time at 7:30. We had lined up fairly far back, and it took about 2 minutes to get to the start line, but that was just fine. And we were off!

I immediately lost Amy and Shannon, as they darted ahead through the foot traffic. I figured I'd catch them on Scotland Wells on the big hill if everything went right. The first mile is gently uphill, which is deceptive. I just worked my way through the crowds, trying not to burn too much extra energy darting around, picking my open spots and pushing through them. Saw a bunch of old running acquaintances as I worked forward, never to see them again. [Ed. Note: Foreshadowing]. I went ahead and put on the Terminator shades, since it was easier to wear them that way than on top of my head. I also saw the tallest guy I've ever seen in a footrace. I'm not short at 6 feet tall, but this guy was easily a 7 footer, perhaps taller. That's a lot of stress on a pair of running shoes!

Turned into the Motive office park, and after another couple of turns, hit the first mile marker in a fairly slow split. No worries. I was up to speed by now, with clear running ahead. Next 3 miles were uneventful, moderate to flat terrain, with a big two-stage downhill during mile 4 to the bottom where Scotland Wells turned back up. I skipped the first water stop, and took a cup at mile 3, along with half of my Enervitene. Passed the Guv on the long downhill, and I heard his bodyguards say "Here it comes!" as we saw the turn for Scotland Wells. Now the race would really begin. I paced myself early by trying to run fairly relaxed, but quick, keeping my HR to a solid number. So far, so good. I felt great!

Splits miles 1-4: 9:19, 8:13, 8:10, 7:55 (big downhill mile there). Avg pace so far: 8:24, right on schedule.

Making the turn for Scotland Wells, after having looked at it while doing the downhill, is a psychological experiment crafted by some demented researcher. However, we had no choice but to take it on, if we chose to finish the race at all. The half mile or so of Scotland Wells was thick with spectators, who all hoped to see barfing and angst, sort of like they were at a NASCAR race and wanted just to see the wrecks. I shifted into a hill gear, and started chugging up it, Wilke style. The whole climb turned surreal, with my steady progress up the hill taking me past dozens of runners. You'd see people run, then jog, then shuffle, and then finally break and go into a full walk, some with hands on knees to push themselves up. Sort of like in the Tour de France, when the domestiques would go all out for their team leader, and once they ran out of gas, they'd just fall by the wayside, like spent booster rockets. It was a lot like that today. Anyway, I was somewhere on the way up, seriously thinking about following the example of those around me and starting a walk, when Carrie yelled from the side of the road, "Go Jay!" Dammit. Now, I had to keep running at least long enough to get out of her line of sight! So, I trundled on, lungs starting to scream a little. Sufficiently past her now, I again thought about walking the last 50 yards or so up the steep initial portion of the climb. But, just when I was forming the thought, I saw Jason on the near side of the road, and he yelled encouraging words to me. Now, it was all over, I had to run the whole darned thing, so I gutted it out and finished the hill in good style. Thanks, Jason and Carrie! I truly wouldn't have done so well there without your help! Now on the false "flat," which was still a steady incline, just a tad flatter, I found a faster rhythm, while trying to recover a little on that stretch. Surprisingly, I think I was able to do that. Kept passing folks, and finally, the torment was over, and we turned left towards the Mile 5 timing mat and water station. The relief was palpable.

I gave Larry a "low five" at the timing mat, took some water and the rest of my Enervitene at the water station there, and turned right to go up the nasty little hill that was there. Did well on that one...after Scotland Wells, the other hills didn't seem quite so awful. Cresting that hill, I protected my quads as much as I could going down the long downhill that followed, trying to remember the Gilbert-approved technique for downhill running. I was in a good frame of mind now, feeling pretty good, and I tried to take advantage of the easier pieces of this tough section. We crossed over and dropped down to a low water crossing, where the mile 6 marker was, and then climbed out of that. These smaller hills were taking a toll on those around me, too. Bad early pacing was really catching up with a lot of folks. During mile 7, I finally saw Shannon ahead of me, and so started stalking her for a possible running pass. I didn't see Amy, so she was still ahead, too. As we started the last tough hill, a double hill with a long shallow start and a nasty steep finish, I told a guy who looked like he was in trouble that it was truly the last hill. I think it helped him a little. Anyway, up that last hill, and in the words of Gilbert, it was theoretically time to "Go!" I got my rhythm back, and continued my chase of Shannon as the course flattened out. Took Gatorade at the mile 7 water station, and was off. The worst was over, and all I had to do now was pick up the pace. :-)

Mile splits 5-7: 8:38, 8:19, 8:22. Very good running in this tough section. Overall pace now 8:25. Time to go.

Mile 8 was where I bonked last year, waiting for my GU to kick in, so I was determined to make amends for that this year. I found a good rhythm on the flatter terrain (some slight inclines, but nothing severe), and soon caught up with Shannon. We had a brief conversation, and she finally told me to have a good race, so I pushed, thinking I would be moving away from her. Surprisingly, she changed her mind, and just hooked up with me, and we ran together until the middle of mile 9. That probably helped me keep moving faster. I could see Amy ahead of us, in her Texas shorts, but the gap seemed to stay at a steady 50-100 yards. I hoped I could catch her, but I was starting to doubt myself. Shannon and I passed Bryan on Jollyville Road, and my main thought was how long we had to run on this straightaway. Shannon finally said to me that I was starting to arch my back and run leaning backwards, and I appreciate that. I fixed that problem, and immediately started feeling better, and sped up for the rest of the race. Now in a good hard finishing gear, I turned onto Oak Knoll, and cranked it up for the homestretch.

Passing the 9 mile marker, I skipped that water stop, concentrating on momentum and speed. Suddenly, it seems, I found myself about 20 yards behind Amy. She was moving well, but I slowly gained on her as we zigzagged through the Motive business park again. Gilbert was running backwards on the course there, and yelled at us to run hard, and then he was gone. Now on the finishing straight, I finally caught Amy with maybe a half mile to go. She looked at me and said, "Don't do this to me again!," because I've caught her late at a bunch of races in the spring. We were running hard, so I told her to get going, and we'd run it in together. Later, of course, we both admitted that we'd have run slower if we hadn't seen each other, but this time, we were constantly picking it up all the way home. I was in serious focus mode now, straining my vision to see where the turn into the parking lot for the finish line was. We used the gentle downhill for all it was worth, and once we got to the turn, it was really sharp to the right. Amy cut the inside corner, and I was stuck going around to the left to get around a guy in the middle of the road. Giving it all I had, I chased Amy to the finish, but she got me by less than a second, beating me fair and square. I knew I had run a great race, but I was stunned to see my final time. What was it, you say?

Mile splits 8-10: 8:15, 7:30, 7:18! I don't think I ran any miles as fast as that in the 10K a few weeks ago! Overall time 1:21:59, pace 8:12/mile. I had destroyed my course PR and Masters PR by 6:32. It was a fabulous race, and I'm mostly proud of how consistent my pacing was and how strong I was late in the race. I think I've exorcised the various demons that had gotten me at this race in the past.

We took water, and caught our breath as we waited (not long) for Shannon and Bryan to finish right behind us. Alex soon showed up, with Gretchen and Liliana and Richard, and we all set out on a really slow recovery jog around the complex. Gretchen and Liliana ran while holding their granola and yogurt bowls, which gives you some idea of the very easy recovery pace that we established. Alex got under 7:00/mile pace, so he smoked the race, and Richard had a good day, too, blowing away his PR from last year. That recovery running sure felt good, and we were happy people.

I peeled off to get a dry and clean shirt at my truck, along with Endurox, and that was wonderful. Just having fresh clothes to put on after running like that is a nice thing. I chatted with Marcy, who was doing strides in the parking lot, and then headed to the post-race festivities for some food. Got Powerade, water, a banana, Girl Scout cookies and a Clif Bar, and I was all set! I drank all the fluids, ate the banana, and saved the cookies and Clif Bar for later.

Patrick was there with his dog, and it was nice of him to show up bright and early to be a spectator! The post-race conversations were fun and varied, as we all came down off our running highs. The sun felt great as we simply enjoyed the feeling of a race well run. Alex had a sausage wrap, I think, but declined my offer of my bib tag for a second helping. I wasn't interested in food that complicated quite so soon.

Anyway, a great race, and now it's time to spend 5 weeks or so purely on training, as the next Distance Challenge race is on 11/20, the Motive Half marathon, featuring another very long hill climb.

For the week, just over 40 miles running, two gym workouts, 37 minutes of cycling. I'm a happy but tired guy. Gilbert told us that 5 easy miles would be plenty tomorrow for a recovery run, so that's what I'll aspire to, here in the 'Hood.