RACE REPORT: TROAD 8K 2012

Signed up for the race because it was one that I didn't do before (and it was the first year that they offered an 8K in addition to the innaurugal year's 5K), because I had a pull-back week scheduled (4x6 mi over the course of the week), and I was curious to see where my fitness was.  In the lead-up week, I planned to take the usual 2 days b/f the race completely off.

Tuesday, Sep 18:
6.1 in 53:05, 8:42 ave, at the park.  Legs were still kinda recovering from the 20er from 2 days ago, so I took it easy.

Wednesday, Sep 19:
Legs still recovering today, so I biked instead of running.  50 min.  Took it easy again.  My hunger levels increased this week, maybe because the 20er kicked up my metabolism.

Thursday and Friday, off.  Even though I only biked Wednesday, my legs were still feeling like they had run on Wedesnday.

Saturday morning...

Woke at 5:15, took my warmup shower, had dry Cheerios and a banana.  Normally, I like a good combo of carbs, protein, calcium, and healthy fat.  But oddly, on race day, I'm always feeling more like carbs.  That's a good thing - it knows what works.

I drove out early so that I could get a good t-shirt size... 2nd one there.  Nice porta-potties with the portable-sinks, too.  Sat in my car, studying the map, which I drew out on a piece of paper.  Didn't record elevation, although a note during packet pickup warned that there was a big hill, with hills in the back half, too.  "Don't Croak!" it warned.  Also assembled my number, iPod shuffle, socks, etc.  Had 1 chocolate-covered expresso bean 1 hr before the race start... studies show that 1 hr is optimal.

Ran into a couple of friends while warming up. 

There were bagpipes at the start - cool.  We started off.  I think I paced pretty well, although in the mile, I might've slowed.  It's hard to tell, because of the hills.  The course went down a main road, turned into some residential areas, went through a cemetary, went around office buildilngs, finished with like a mile of moderate uphill on a medium-sized but deserted road, then a sharp downhill.  It even went by one of the offices of my company! 

I passed 2 girls at about the halfway point, and I was mostly alone after that.  In the last mile and a half, the volunteers along the course and a couple of cyclists told me that I was second and cheered me on - that was nice of them.  At the very end, in the last 0.3 mi, we intersected with the 5Kers, who had started at the same time as us.  A guy from that group gave me a good run at the end for the finishing kick, and he outkicked me.  It was exhilirating because of the steepness of the downhill.  It was a "screaming downhill finish", just like the pre-race notes promised.  I finished in 35:03, 7:01 ave.  If it really was 8K, that's a good time for me - near my potential (which would've been about 6:53 pace), given the warmth (67 degrees + some sun) and the hills.

The race website (which is one of the best I've seen for a 5K... videos and lots of info available) showed a pic of and described last year's prize... a giant concrete toad.  They were back this year!

They also had a fun game involving a rando guy named "Jack".  It's called "You don't know Jack".  If your 5K split (for either 8Kers or 5Kers) is faster than Jack's, your name gets put in a lottery for a prize.  That's cool.

I get squirmy and jump and run away at the first sight of snakes, frogs, and the like.  The TROADS were laid out prior to the race, so I knew what I had a shot of winning... kinda wanted to win, to get my very own TROAD, and kind of didn't want to win, so that I didn't have to get a TROAD, haha.

My friend's boyfriend had an awesome time, finishing in 31ish, I think.  He got 1st AG.

The TROAD was 30 lbs.  It was funny to see the winners get their TROADS plopped into their arms.

There were a few winner's pics taken after the ceremony (and the great raffles sponsored by Fleet Feet).

I realized when people were getting TROADS that it was just like Harry Potter 3, during the choir performance!  I soooo hoped that we would be able to do that too.  The 5K pics were taken first, and they decided to put theirs on the ground.  #WASTEDOPPORTUNITY.

By the time they got around to the 8K pics, only 2 of us were left... so it was also somewhat of a choir fail.

It was a fun day.  I don't know what I'm going to do with the TROAD. 

On the way home, I put the TROAD on the floor of the passenger side of my car.  I stopped by a shop afterwards, and when I came back to put the merchandise in the car, I audibly gasped in fear when I saw the TROAD.  It was funny.  When I was little, one time, I think I saw a bullfrog that was probably 75% (at least in my mind) of the size of the TROAD.  The first day the TROAD was in my apartment, it scared me a few times.  I think I'll see if I can give it to my dad.  Or, I'll hide it somewhere for my dad to find next time I visit my parents.