2017 Illinois Race Weekend 10K

Starting Line Forum Encounter

While this was a race, probably my only 10K of the year and only opportunity to run my age, the primary purpose was to meet with some of the amazing runners from the Starting Line Forum on Runners World. It was disappointing that several of the regulars wouldn't be able to attend but six of us could come and race: Lynn, Chris, Jess, Sandra, Jaime, and me. That's in no particular order, but as I look at it the first two ran the marathon, the next two the half marathon, while Jaime and I ran the 10K. Along with the runners family and friends brought the total to 12 or 13. Some how we all managed to make it to the Olive Garden in Champaign for our prerace dinner.

With the stage set for a great get together I now had to get my training in order and still prepare for a 50K in May. That turned out to be more challenging than I expected because I had to work on getting my speed back while increasing my mileage at the same time. As a race the 50K was more important because it is a key component in preparing for my fall goal race at North Coast 24. Getting my speed back proved to be the more difficult of the two though my mileage still wasn't what I wanted it to be either. As a result I had to reassess my goals and decided that if I could run under 75 minutes, somewhere around a 12 minute mile pace, I would be satisfied. When I learned the Jaime would be happy to slow down, run with me, and keep me company during the race, I was overjoyed. For all the years I've been running and racing this is the first time since a 1968 mile time trial that I would have someone to pace me rather than the other way around.

Everyone seemed to be obsessing over the weather forecast which predicted rain and wind. Of course the forecast kept changing so I had to pack running gear for all the possible conditions. When race day finally came, much to my surprise we had almost ideal weather. It was a little cooler than I like so I wore long sleeves but could have gotten by with short sleeves in a pinch. The wind may have been more bothersome for the runners in the half marathon and marathon but for me it was a non-factor.

With a few texts Saturday morning we managed to locate everyone before the start. Jaime finally found me after a couple text messages and we managed to find Chris and Lynn already in the corrals. I think she found Jess and Sandra as well but my own recollection is blurry at that point. After wishing them luck and all the corrals finally cleared, Jaime and I were able to get in a short warmup before our race. For the 10K they had volunteers holding pace signs to help runners line up. We looked around and finally found the 12:00 sign, then waited for the start.

Once the race started all we could do at first was walk toward the starting line. Checking results afterward it took us two minutes before we crossed the starting mat and could begin to run. There were almost 2500 runners making it the largest 10K I've ever run as far as I can recall. The early pace felt so easy that I was concerned that we were a lot slower than even my revised goal pace. Not trusting current pace readings on my Garmin I didn't get a good read until we reached the mile in a little over 12 minutes, about what I had hoped and planned for. Meanwhile we were chatting away about running, different races, and whatever other topics came to mind. We weren't really in any hurry so we settled into that pace and followed the crowd.

I need to depart at this point and explain a little about the splits I'm reporting. I'm well aware of the errors that can occur with GPS readings, but my GPS reading and also my sense of pace are at odds with the 3.4 mile split reported in the online results. That shows my chip time as 41:01 and a pace of 12:04 with a final chip time of 1:14:46 and a pace of 12:02. I'm positive we picked up the pace much more than that,and I think Jaime can corroborate that, so I'll be reporting the adjusted Garmin splits.

I was oblivious to most of what was going on nearby including the scenery and spectators. You'll have to read Jaime's race report to get that. Mostly I was focusing on maintaining and even pace and effort along with keeping up a running conversation with Jaime. I know we did run through parts of downtown Champaign after which the course moved into residential neighborhoods. This was a really great change of pace from running on major streets and thoroughfares and added to the pleasant atmosphere of the race. Residents were on the curb cheering, some handing out refreshments, and I think I saw one grilling hotdogs or brats at the side of the road. By this time we'd passed 2 miles with the second mile a little slower, 12:22 to 12:12 for the first mile. I was relaxing a little too much so I started to increase the effort slightly. Mile 3 was back down to 12:13. I was still feeling relatively fresh and relaxed so I increased the effort again, though I didn't say anything to Jaime. As we came to mile 4 we were in the general vicinity of where I lived for a while when I was a student at the U of I. The course took us past Hessel Park which I remember, but the area had changed so much that I didn't recognize much else. Mile 4 was 12:06 and as we headed back in the direction of the stadium we passed mile 5 in 12:04. At this point I much a more concerted effort to increase the pace and it was noticeable enough that I think Jaime said something about it. We could finally see the stadium in the distance and I was anxious to get there since my legs were finally starting the feel the effort. By the way we were keeping up the conversation. The faster pace and harder effort didn't impact that at all. We turned down 1st Street and I was anticipating the turn into the stadium when the course threw me a little surprise. To make up the distance for a certified 10K we had to ran past the turn for a short out and back before coming back to enter the stadium. This wasn't clear on the course map I had seen. If I had been racing hard it might have upset me and thrown me off stride. As it was we took it in stride and finally ran into the stadium with half marathon runners coming in from a different direction and a line of cones separating us as we crossed the finish line them to the left an us to the right. Jaime and I crossed the line together holding hands with arms in the air. I haven't seen any photos yet but I expect them to be the normal race photos showing me in an unflattering pose.

There were photographers all over the field so there should be some post race photos as well as hopefully some good finish line and race photos along the course. We grabbed some food, pretzels, pizza, and water. There were bananas, cookies, and pasta as well as some other concoctions to drink that I avoided. It was chilly with the wind so I ran back to the rental car to change into something warmer. Meanwhile Jess and Sandra finished their race and we eventually met up with them in the stadium. Since it would be a while before Lynn and Chris would finish, I went with Jaime and family onto the course to find Chris and cheer him on. Lynn was already past the areas we could easily get to, so we missed her. I'll let Chris tell his own story, but we walked a ways on the course with him to mile 22 before heading back to the stadium to see Lynn finish. Once Chris finished and seemed to be in the good care of his friends, those of us who were staying over agreed to meet for dinner later. Jaime picked a place that had great burgers which went down well. After dinner and saying our goodbyes, we all headed our separate ways.

Overall I was satisfied with my race. I could have pushed it harder and run maybe a minute or so faster, but that would have cut down and our conversation time during the race because I would have been concentrating more on the running. I've checked the local race schedule and it may be difficult to find another 10K to try to run my age. Several that would have been possibilities conflict with races I'm already registered for. If I don't it will end a long streak of about 25 years where I have run my age. But the weekend itself, meeting everyone, though I had met Lynn before, and running with Jaime was everything I'd hoped for. We had a wonderful time and should have another one, whether it be there or somewhere else shouldn't matter. Many events offer multiple race distance so there would be something for everyone. Now off to finish my preparations for Dawn to Dusk to Dawn 50K on May13th.