Freezeroo #5 a return to racing.
Ever since I PR’d in the 5k back in early November I’ve had a tough of it on the roads. My turkey trot race was terrible which I blamed on the 10k xc race in the snow a few days before, December was a total no go because of the snipping and my 2 January Freezeroo races were both subpar which I blamed on walking pneumonia/tuberculosis. Aside from the weather which was less than idea (10 degrees and 10+ mph winds), there was no reason I could run a good race at Freezeroo #5.
Freezeroo #5 an 8 miler in Greece in memory of Tom Brannon. Because I had been racing so poorly the last few months, and doing pretty much no speedwork either I didn’t know how fast to race. I decided I would go out with Kenny for the first mile and worry about the other 7 miles later. This actually worked out pretty well. The first mile was mostly downhill and with the wind so I had a very easy time going through the mile in 5:18, just a few steps behind Kenny. Once we turned and lost our downhill and tailwind I quickly dropped off to around 5:30 pace and Kenny pulled away. A runner named Brian Barker from UofR was running with me and we came through the 5k together in 17:05.
I made a move away from Brian just past the 5k mark and open up a bit of gap during miles 4 and 5. As we turned onto Long Pond Road for the long stretch back into the wind my pace fell of dramatically. I’ve always felt a bit like a big sail running into the wind, and I went from running a fairly comfortable 5:35 pace at mile 5 to 6-6:10 pace the last 3 miles. It was just about mile 6 when Brian passed me and opened up a 10 second gap which he held onto for the rest of the race. I tried many times in those last 2 miles to surge and catch him but I only managed to close the gap by a few seconds each time before fading again.
Overall I’m very happy with my 46:15 finish, and I’m looking forward to the final Freezeroo which is a 10k out in Ontario on February 22nd.
The last Freezeroo is setting up to be a great competition. Kenny and Dave are only few seconds apart in the stands, and if I can put together a good race I have a shot (all be it a long one) of catching Brian for 3rd.