The 5Ks of Summer: 2010 North Shore Half Marathon / 5k

Sunday, June 13, 2010  ~  7:15am  ~  Highland Park, IL

Results:  27:03; 93rd of 520 overall; 7th of 19 in Male 35-39 division

I’ve set a goal to run a 5K every week this summer.  Last week, it was the Hope for the Hungry 10K Race / 5K Run/Walk at Old School Forest Preserve in Libertyville, IL.  I didn’t have a good experience.  It was muggy all morning, and I was still dragged out from the end of the school year and graduation and after-graduation parties the night before.  I never quite set my pace and my breathing was wrecked throughout.  I finished in 28:34, which was considerably slower than the 27:26 I ran in a 5K over Mother’s Day Weekend.

So I was hoping to do better yesterday.  I was well-rested, and made sure to drink plenty of water the few days before the race.  I didn’t dig the idea of waking up at 5:30am on a Sunday morning during summer vacation to drive a half hour for a race, but thought it would be a testimony to my determination if I did.  So I did.

I knew before the race started that I was “on.”  I had a vision Saturday evening that I was going to run hard.  I could see myself doing it, all the way down to what I would be wearing during the race.  I saw myself halfway through the race, running with a gleeful lack of effort; just breezing along like I was born running.  There must be some credibility to the notion of positive visualization and how it can affect an outcome–  I’ve commented before in these pages about how I envision myself writing days before I actually write (and many times it goes as far as where I’m sitting and what I’m wearing).  My writing experience at those times usually turns out positive.

So I was excited about running as I went to bed Saturday night, and was even more excited about it when the alarm went off Sunday morning.  I couldn’t wait to get to the starting line.

The race was huge.  And I mean HUGE!  There were over 2500 runners combined; 520 in the 5K alone.  I felt insignificant among the ebb and flow of runners, which was good for me because I didn’t feel self-conscious about my slow pace.  It wouldn’t have mattered how fast I ran anyhow; there were plenty of runners around me at all times (because misery loves company!).

I passed a couple hundred people in the first mile, picked off a few dozen more runners on a quarter-mile uphill stretch, and was still in the thick of a pack of runners.  It was that uphill stretch that wrecked my breathing.  I couldn’t seem to regain it for another half-mile, and then only in spurts.  I tried to pace myself off some runners near me, which helped a little bit, but by the time I reached the third mile, it was a lost cause.  I tried to keep going as best I could until the end.

I broke the finish line in unbelievable time.  In fact, I’m calling this a sub-27 min. 5K.  Things were so crowded at the start line that I can reasonably say I lost 10 seconds of time swerving away from walkers and baby stollers.  Regardless, it’s the fastest 5K I’ve run since I was 19 years old.  In fact, it’s faster than many of the 5Ks I ran when I was 16.  What makes me even happier, though, is that is a complete turnaround from last December when I ran a miserable 5K in Racine (30:51; I was still building back up from the Achilles injury).

So now I’m sore.  I don’t mind the pain so much because it reminds me that I really pushed myself.

I’m happy that I can push myself.