Victorian Classic 10K - Eureka Springs, AR

Wilson and Wilson Folk Art

This race wasn't on my schedule until about a week ago.  I saw it coming up and thought it might be a good fit.  The race is in Eureka Springs.  Right away I knew this course was hilly and wouldn't be likely to yield a PR but I didn't think I was in PR shape anyway.  I have only just recently begun to add speed work back to my training.  This was a good opportunity to simply focus on racing against other runners and get in a really good workout.

When I read the race description, something stood out to me.  The top 3 runners in each age group receive an official Victorian Classic mug with Blakeley Wilson artwork.  I couldn't find any pictures of that online but it sure sounded cool.  Shelly is a big fan of the Wilson and Wilson Folk Art company.  I looked over previous results and I thought I had a good chance at placing at least 3rd in my age group even considering I'm not yet in peak fitness for racing.  I didn't tell Shelly about the mug before the race, just in case I didn't earn one.  I didn't want her to be disappointed.

The weather was perfect, about 45F with no wind.  I left my stopwatch in the car and decided to run by feeling.  That is what I did.  I ran by feeling -- feeling exhausted!  Wow, what a course.  There were big hills and little hills, steep hills and rolling hills, up hills and down hills.

My goals were { finish in 42 minutes, top 10 overall, top 3 in my age group }.  I did better than that in all respects.  I finished in 40:52, took 6th overall, and I actually won the Masters division (with a couple of asterisks because 2 guys were faster than me but they placed 2nd and 3rd overall).  I really surprised myself.  That was less than a minute slower than my previous 10K PR.  On this course, that is really something.  This bodes well for even better races to come...

As the Masters winner I received the official Victorian Classic mug that I wanted and I also got an artist's print of Eureka Springs suitable for framing and a free overnight stay  in one of the local lodges. Nice.