My First Race in Colorado – 10K Race Report

Today I ran the Compass Montessori Harvest Run 10K. My friends Brian and Bridget from Columbus had been planning to run,but Bridget broke her ankle a few weeks ago. I headed out to the race this morning, still expecting to see Brian. It was a chilly day – grey with a misty rain falling. I arrived at the school in plenty of time, and anxiously changed a few times: shorts and a t-shirt to pants and a long sleeved shirt, and finally to shorts, a long-sleeved shirt and a jacket.

Due to the rain, my left knee was grumbling a bit. 14 years after my car accident, I still struggle with some intermittent stiffness when the weather changes. However, as I walked around the school before the race, I found it loosening up. By race time, although I’d given myself permission to take it easy, I was feeling strong. It was a small race, so I started up close to the front. As everyone rushed out to start, I found myself settle into a –if not comfortable, at least sustainable– pace within the first half mile or so. I felt like I was running steady and was surprised to see my first mile was a 7:30. (My 10K pr is a 7:43 pace)

The course was a series of out-and-backs, and the 5K and 10K overlapped often, so it was a bit difficult to gauge how you were doing. At the first water-stop, (1.5 miles in), there was one woman ahead of me, and a few men. The 10Kers had a nice loop on some crushed rock surface around a park, when I had a few guys pass me. The surface was probably good for us, but I felt very sluggish on it. My second mile was a 7:36, and we’d hit mile 3 (7:47) before we left this quicksand-like surface and started our route back to the finish.

I don’t run many 10Ks, but I’ve never really liked them much. Today actually felt good: the distance seemed manageable. As the second half of the race was underway, I kept close to the two guys that passed me. I felt myself panting behind them, but I was able to stay reasonably close. I was getting warm, so I slipped off my jacket and tied it around my waist. We closed in on another guy, and then there was a group of four of us in a pack. There were still no girls in sight ahead of me.

We repeated the first part of the course around to the water stop. Breathing deeply but happy to be off the packed trail, I was surprised to see a 7:19 pace. Evidently the Colorado altitude wasn’t having too much of a negative impact on my performance! I grabbed a bit of water, and in my mind, we were on the homestretch.

I will admit, the last ~2 miles started to seem long. Our pack of four shrank to three, and I’ll admit when I hit the 5 mile marker (7:37), I was wishing this were a 5 mile race! Much of the course was on trails, which in the drizzle made for a bit of a messy run. I did a good job of keeping up with the guys until one last mini-turnaround, and then they slid further and further out of sight. I told myself that I wasn’t competing with them anyway, and forced myself to keep pushing! I have a bad habit of walking when things seem tough, but I forced myself to gut through it. As I neared the 6 mile marker, I knew I was doing well, and I knew that sub-47 would guarantee me a good PR. I was careful not to jimx myself by looking at my watch. Before I knew it, I had hit the parking lot and came barreling down the slight hill to the finish. My garmin complained that I was going too fast, and I cheerily ignored as I crossed the finish in a proud 45:55!

Yes, despite a knee that had been bothering me in the morning, despite the CO altitude that’s supposed to add minutes to your pace, I managed to set a nearly two-minute PR this morning! As I finished I heard some other women talking about their finish time, so I figured that I had missed them somehow with all the twists and turns of the course. I changed, and stuck around for the awards, as I knew I was ripe for something. Imagine my surprise when I saw that the two guys I’d stuck with for most of the race were #1 and 2! Yes, dear reader, that meant I was the first place female finisher in the 10K, third place overall (can you tell it was a small race?). My loot bag for winning was impressive; I received a running shirt, a $15 roadID GC and a $10 running store GC. Not bad for a $30 race!

Prize for 1st Place Female

Afterwards, I found myself coughing, which was what used to happen after playing hockey in college. Based on the fact that my average HR was 181 for the event, I think I definitely was pushing myself! The fact is, though, I’m glad I did! I feel really good and strong. While I don’t anticipate the marathon next week will be anything outstanding, I have a really good feeling about January 🙂