RACE REPORT: Hot Chocolate 10K

Wherein I run a Tempo Run instead of a 10K race...

Isn't it funny how easy it is after a race to look back and go, "Oh yeah, of course. Why couldn't I see that before the race?". I definitely had one of those 'hindsight is 20/20' moments during this race, and it occurred at exactly Mile 2.

Here's how it all unfolded:

First, a little bit about the course. The race starts with a steep downhill half mile, which is worrisome given that it's an out and back course. You can see from the graphic the steep drop at the beginning then the uphill climb at the end. It is pretty flat as advertised throughout the rest of the race and the turn-around point running through Amboy Park along the river is great.



So, we're off, and I immediately feel like this is not going to be my usual 10K experience. There's no massive adrenaline rush, and even though we're running downhill, I am not flying like I thought I'd be. I was just sitting back, totally within myself, waiting for the 1st mile to finish, so I could make whatever adjustment I was going to make. Robot mode.

Mile 1 goes by in 7:59, and I realize there will be no speeding up today. It's not that I'm having a bad day. I don't feel tired. I just feel slow. Of course, that's when it all becomes crystal clear. My "Aha!" moment: The fastest pace I've been running in the last 4 weeks is Half Marathon pace, or 8:22. So why would I think my body would do anything other than what it's been trained to do- lock on to 8:17 to 8:22 pace, and run for either 4 miles or 3 x 2 miles? I wouldn't, of course.

Yeah, I know. Mile 2 of a race is a terrible time to have this kind of mental clarity. But it was too late to do anything about it, so I set my hurt pride aside, and settled in for a Tempo workout.

10K Splits

7:59 Downhill Mile
8:26
8:18
8:23
8:13
8:42 Uphill Mile


At Mile 2, I found myself behind a guy and a girl running together. The guy was wearing a Thunder Road Marathon shirt, as was I , so I tucked in behind them. Apparently, they too had been running nothing faster than tempo pace.

As I hit the turnaround, and I hear a "Go, Psyche!" from Jeff Carnivale, who was looking strong, and yes, I was jealous. Damn him, he's fast!

Around Mile 4, my marathon guy says to his friend, "We're still running 8's. Oh, well." I think to myself, "I feel ya, buddy."

I pulled myself up the final hill, still feeling strong and slow. As I crossed the finish line in a pathetic 51:57, my only thought was, "I do not want to run any more races I'm not trained for."


Lessons Learned:

1. Don't expect to hold race goal pace unless you've been training for it.

BOOK REVIEW: Once A Runner

A couple of weeks ago, as I was trolling through the ZombieRunner site I noticed they’re carrying John L. Parker's classic book, "Once A Runner". This is a book I've been dying to read, but because it's been out of print, I've had to settle for reading about the book, including its history- which is compelling in itself.

It seems the hardest part for Parker wasn’t writing the book, but publishing it. After multiple rejections, Parker founded his own company and printed off 5,000 copies. He sold the book at road races out of the trunk of his car.

The book eventually found its way into the hands of high school, college, and postgraduate athletes all over the country. Reading it became a rite of passage on many teams, and tattered copies were handed down like sacred texts from generation to generation. It has become one of the most beloved sports novels ever written. Anything supported for 30 years by "word of mouth" has to be special.

Gradually, through word of mouth, demand outweighed supply – and although he eventually printed off 100,000 copies, "Once A Runner" became one of the hardest-to-find books in America. It remained out-of-print and unavailable for less than $75 on-line. According to Bookfinder, the novel was the most-searched for out-of-print fiction or literature book for 2007 and 2008. All of that changed in April, however, when Scribner re-printed the novel.

Delighted to get my hands on a copy, I devoured the book within days. Even as I was turning the pages at break neck speed, I was aware I would be re-reading it from cover to cover the moment I was done.

As someone who ran competitively in high school and college (briefly), this book really nails the experience on the head. Parker knows what he’s writing about because it’s partly autobiographical. He ran at the University of Florida, and later with American Olympians Frank Shorter and Jack Bachelor at Florida Track Club.

The plot centers on Quenton Cassidy, a fictional miler at Southeastern University in Florida. Cassidy is on a quest to run a sub-4 minute mile, but his goal is jeopardized when he is suspended from athletics after butting heads with the University’s administration. However, (fictional) former-running great Bruce Denton takes the athlete under his wing and the duo continue to train and race. Parker describes Quenton’s twice-a-day training, bottomless pit hunger, and social sacrifices in a way that both competitive and recreational runners can relate to. For example, Quenton first shatters the all-important four-minute mile not in a race but during a random training session—"Just another goddamn workout."

This being a sports novel, there is a BIG RACE at the end where EVERYTHING is on the line. But the true climax of the book is captured in one of Quenton's workouts in preparation for the race, an interval session requiring 60 quarter-miles (for those of you who've done quarters workouts, no, that's not a typo). Denton forces Quenton to run the final 20 alone: "I know you can do this thing because I once did it myself," Denton tells him. "When it was over I knew some very important things." And thus it is after the workout, and not the race, that Quenton achieves true self-knowledge.

Critics have charged Parker’s book with being elitist and exclusive. That may be true, but I think runners of all abilities will find they can relate to the book in some small way. Running is essentially a solitary sport – what you do or don’t do is up to you. The only person to congratulate or berate on race day is yourself. Whether you’re training for a sub-4 minute mile or your first 5K, I think that lesson will resonate. This book left me with a desire to train harder and run faster, even if my mile PR is minutes slower than the Cassidy’s.

I have to admit, a part of me wishes the novel had stayed out-of-print. Not everyone is up for the running life, and not everyone should be able to get their hands on this book. It should take effort, whether that means borrowing (or stealing) it from someone or saving up $77.98. Once a Runner's portrait of running may very well smack of elitism, but it is a democratic elitism: Not everyone can be a runner, but a runner can come from anywhere.

10K Race Plan: PGPS Is Goin' DOWN

"What you don’t want to have happen in a race is to slow down gradually over the course of the event."

I'm filing that little gem under, "things I know but which I cannot implement." All you have to do is take one look at my 5 and 10K splits to know I am the Poster Girl of Positive Splits. Just call me PGPS ("P-Gips").

5K: 23:42
7:30
7:40
7:46
.1@ 6:23

10K: 49:13
7:50
7:50
7:52
7:53
7:58
8:11
.2 @ 7:36

Classic. What's occurring in the races above is that I'm going out overly fast, which causes me to slow at a greater rate than would have been the case had I been more conservative early on.

So I have to ask myself why, if I know running an even pace or a negative split produces the best times, do I not race that way? The answer probably lies in a combination of things: Lack of discipline in carrying out the race plan, fear, insecurity, adrenaline, and perhaps not enough patience. Since it has to do with human nature, it's probably complex. Luckily, I don't believe I have to know why I do something in order to be able to fix it. Whew!

2010 may well be my Year Of Learning To Race Well. Too bad YOLTRW isn't a witty acronym. That would've been cool.

It all kicks off with successfully following the race plan on Saturday. This race will primarily be an exercise in following the race plan (F-TRP). If following the race plan produces a time I'm happy with, all the better. If I run a time I am not happy with, but I implement the race plan to perfection, I will consider it a success.

THE PLAN

I've divided the race into four quarters of 1.5 miles each and I've devised a strategy for mentally managing each quarter.

Q1. In the first 1.5 miles I will simply try to hold back. I say simply, but I know that holding back in the first mile or so is the most diificult task of this entire race plan. This quarter needs to feel the easiest with RPE (Rating of Perceived Exertion) being the lowest of the race — and far lower than what my mind will be telling me to do. RPE is everything here. If I start breathing hard here I went out much too fast.

Q2. In miles 1.5 through 3 miles, I'll run at 7:54 goal average pace. RPE should be only slightly harder here than it was for the first quarter. I'll concentrate on form and my breathing here, while being careful not to get caught up in "racing". I will concentrate on my own race.

Q3. Miles 3 - 4.5 are the toughest in a 10K. If I slow down, this is when it will happen. The purpose of the first half of the race was to prepare me for this section. If I have controlled my effort and stayed in the moment earlier on, I will now be able to maintain average pace, although it will now feel much harder. In other words, RPE will rise rapidly even though my body is not working any harder than before. During this quarter I should expect a lot of negative thoughts and feelings. That's normal, so I'll expect it, but not listen to it. I'll maintain focus and effort in this quarter, and do whatever I need to do mentally to get through this section of the race. Again, this is the toughest section, even if I paced properly earlier. If I didn't, then this part will be incredibly depressing.

Q4. In miles 4.5 through 6.2, the end is mentally in sight. I should feel capable of increasing the RPE. Now is when I can race others IF I held back in quarters 1 and 2. I'll try to gain on someone up the road. I'll concentrate on that target. As I come into the hill at the finish, I'll begin to increase the effort gradually. I'll try to pass someone here as everyone is tired. I'll go hard, but if I can sprint that means I held back too much. I want to finish feeling as if nothing was left on the course.

Tomorrow, when I'm doing my interval workout, I'm ging to do each interval using the strategy I'll employ for that quarter in the race. I don't want to wait until race day to practice this.

I'm out for blood,PGPS...You have been warned.