May 15 - Capitol Hill Classic 10k
TL;DR: 54:31
Woke up this morning and saw fog outside. Temperature 64, dew point 64 - woof. I knew I was in for a treat today. I have figured out pretty quickly I'm someone who is more adversely affected by heat and humidity than average, so right away I had to temper my expectations. 52:50 seemed unlikely in this weather.
My plan was to hit the lap button at every mile marker to try to keep track of how that mile actually went. And, go figure, I missed the first mile - but I got the rest of them!
Pre-race
The Capitol Hill Classic is more of a local race, so there wasn't a huge crowd. Race start time was 8:30 AM. DW (who wasn't running) and I walked from our apartment, which was about a 22 minute walk. Decent way to get the legs moving. We arrived around 8:20. Since there were no corrals, I didn't see a huge need to get there super early. There were long lines for restrooms and not very many available, but thankfully things moved quickly.
We met a couple of friends who were running their first race - the whole reason I signed up! DW took her spot at the start/finish line, and friends and I headed for the back and chatted a bit. We started around 8:35.
Starting T/D: 65/62 = 127
Mile 1 - 8:53
There were no waves or corrals, so all runners were released at once. That meant there was a mess of bodies to navigate. I wanted to start out around 8:40, but I kept speeding up and slowing down. My watch quite often showed a pace above 9:00, so I knew when it buzzed 8:53 for the first mile that I had probably already started too hot out of the gate. And speaking of hot, I was drenched. I accepted that 52:50 was not realistic today.
The first mile also passed directly in front of the Supreme Court, which is an interesting place these days. That's one cool thing about racing in DC - so many sights!
Mile 2 - 8:31, 0:12 = 8:43
This is where I actually noticed the mile marker, so I was able to hit the lap button and record my actual mile time. Some of this is from the first mile. And again, that first segment was a full mile at 8:31, so I was too hot. I know my calculated expected 10k pace is 8:30, but I wanted to be a bit conservative at the beginning because of the humidity. I could feel the heat affecting me already, as my stomach was... let's call it uncomfortable. Otherwise, this was a pretty uneventful mile mostly down East Capitol Street.
Mile 3 - 8:32, 0:12 = 8:44
Still a bit faster than I would like, but at least I was consistent from mile 2. I could tell I was going to struggle to hold on to this, though. Also noteworthy is this mile was largely downhill; it was a pretty gentle grade, but it helped.
Mile 4 - 8:46, 0:29 = 9:15
Pretty much this entire mile was on the East Bank of the Anacostia River Trail. The nice thing is I run this all the time so I'm very familiar with it. The downside is it's quite narrow. The path can only support 2 runners side-by-side, just as a visual aid. That meant I was running most of this mile with the pack. There were several stretches slower than 9:00. That part didn't bother me too much because I knew the rest would be beneficial. Toward the end of the mile we emerged into the RFK parking lot, and that 0:29 second segment was the second water station. I needed it badly, so I slowed down enough to get 2 drinks.
Mile 5 - 9:01, 0:03 = 9:04
This is where things fell apart for me. Coming out of the RFK parking lot is a steep-ish turning grade that gets us back onto Capitol Hill (hence, the Hill part of Capitol Hill) and I was not prepared for it at all. I think I ran the hill ok, but had I known it was coming I would have slowed down even more leading up to it. My heart rate was very solidly in zone 5 at this point and I was breathing heavy. I took the rest of this segment slowly to try to recover as much as I could.
Mile 6 - 8:13
This was a totally flat and mostly straight mile, so I managed to run it almost dead-on distance-wise. I was feeling a little better; although my HR was still in zone 5, my breathing was a little more regular. 52:50 was absolutely not happening... but I did all that R training, so it was time to find out what I had. I sped up to 7:50 and held on for as long as I could. Mile 5.85 on my watch is the point where my body had enough; I just couldn't hold on any longer and I had to let go.
Mile 0.22 - 7:04
But it turns out, that little bit of rest helped me recover. I passed mile marker 6 and I felt I still had something in the tank, so I took a few steps and let it all hang out. My watch gave me a fast alert of somewhere near 6:00 (all I saw was 6:0 and not the last digit). I was dying from the humidity but I was determined for a sub-55:00 to PR my last 10k race, a 55:15 effort at Princess 2020.
Finish Line - 6.31 miles recorded, 54:31 total. 10k pace 8:47. Total place 444/1144; gender 321/645, age group 136/220
I have never crossed a finish line as gassed as I was today, so I know I left it all on the course and I was a 54:31 10k runner today.
Finishing T/D: 68/64 = 132
Final Thoughts
I signed up for this race at the suggestion of friends running their first race, so I knew I was not specifically prepared for a 10k. However, I have to admit I'm a little disappointed in my time. The Daniels VDOT running equivalency calculator says a 52:50 10k in 68 F should be an equivalent 53:34, so I was a full minute+ slower. The same thing happened at Princess 2022 - I was dealing with adverse conditions (new injury, heat), but I was way off my goal. I'm starting to wonder if I'm not quite as fast as I think I am, and maybe I should adjust my training paces accordingly. It does seem possible that I'm overtraining, but I always feel good and ready to go again the next day so I'm not quite sure.
I'm specifically training for a 5k on June 26. I know it's going to be hot. VDOT says I should be able to do that in 25:27. I was pretty close to that number when I ran a 5k on a whim not long ago, so I'll keep these training paces through that race and see how it goes. I'll also be upping my mileage a bit now that I'm recovered from my pre-Princess and injury and my sinus recovery is going well.
Anyway, I don't want to dwell on my disappointment too much, either. I knew that without a full training cycle it would be tough to hit 52:50, and I just wanted a PR off 55:15 from 2 years ago. That 55:15 was in surprisingly cool weather, and my 54:31 today was quite warm and humid, so I'll take the victory and solder on.
EDIT: I don't know what I was thinking about the 5k time above. I actually ran the 25:27 5k not that long ago, so the 52:50 10k was derived from that. I feel a bit better now - not specifically training for the 10k plus the heat. I do wish I had a bit more in me for a faster time, but today just wasn't my day for that. My focus now turns to beating that 25:27 5k.