But first, let me recap my last indoor track meet before
Nationals. I competed at the University of Washington Husky Classic and came
away with two very solid performances and again, learning experiences. I raced the 5k Friday night and my
goal was to run a PR. I hadn’t raced an indoor 5k in 3 years so my odds were
very good so instead I made it my goal to beat my outdoor 5k PR of 16:39.
Going into the race I felt good. My warm up went great and I
was ready to race. There were a lot of women in the race and when the gun went
off I found myself pushed to the back. After the race I was given the advice to
“not be so nice.” I am not talking throwing elbows or running dirty but merely
holding my ground and letting my competitors know where I am. That may be
keeping a strong arm so as to stop them from cutting in too early.
As the race wore on I used a lot of energy early on stuck in
lane 3 and doing a lot of weaving. When I finally was able to settle in and the
pack strung out I noticed I felt more tired than I should due to not being
relaxed at the start. I managed to run a PR in 16:27 but definitely feel with a
little better racing tactics this can be improved.
The next morning I was set to run the mile. I went to do my
warm up and it felt ugly. My body was tired and my mind was not feeling
energized to race. I wasn’t sore just fatigued. I figured I had nothing to lose
and was excited to race.
When the gun went off I got in good position on the rail
near the back. I didn’t mind being in the back because my goal today was to
learn how to race and relax in a pack atmosphere. Which is exactly what I did.
With two laps to go (just over 600m) I felt good. Surprisingly good and I made
a big move. Right to the front I went feeling unstoppable! I kept thinking
during the race, “Man I feel good!” Then with about 200m to go I realized I had
made my move 200m to soon.
I kicked as best as I could but realized the 5k had taken
some of that out of me. I watched as a handful of girls passed me and was
surprised to pass a couple of them back on the homestretch. I crossed the line
in 4:48. I was very happy with the time and again learned some valuable
information during the race.
When I took the lead I was feeling so good and surprised
that I was feeling so good that I got a little overzealous. Looking back I still could have made
the move but should have conserved some of that energy for the end. In the
Flotrack video you can hear the commentators say something along the lines of me
taking command of the race…oops. I wasn’t going to run away from this field and
shouldn’t have let my excitement get the better of me.
All in all it was a successful weekend and I feel racing
above and below my distance for USATF Indoor Nationals will better prepare me
for the upcoming race. If anything I was at least able to take away some
valuable race strategies from the weekend.
My 5k Race courtesy Flotrack
My 5k Race courtesy Flotrack
Watch more videos on Flotrack
My Mile Race courtesy Flotrack
Watch more videos on Flotrack
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