St. Jude 10K

My complaints, which I now believe were due completely to low vitamin D, began last year on August 19.  It took over a year but I finally felt like racing again.

One of the reasons I wanted to run this race was the course, the paved loop around Lake Fayetteville.  It is my favorite running spot; I usually run that loop a couple of times a week.  It is a little bit hilly, but for Northwest Arkansas, what do you expect?  It is a beautiful trail.  The lake is visible as you run across the dam, but mostly it is a jaunt through the surrounding woods. 

Given the hills and summer heat, I figured my pace would be slowed by a minute or two, but everyone else would slow down too.  Based on my recent training I thought I could finish in 46 minutes, give or take a minute. 

I chose to run without my watch.  I am pretty good at knowing what pace I can maintain just by how it feels.  If it feels like your heart is about to explode, your lungs are on fire, and your muscles could rip apart at any moment, then you are running too fast for a 10K.  That is how a 5K feels.  Okay, not quite.  ;)

I finished in 45:35.  I was first in my age group and 4th master's male but those are really a function of who decides to show up.  More objectively, I was 16th out of 83 men.  Top 20% among men is about where I thought I was, so I'm pretty pleased.