Father's Day 5k - Race Report

Coming off his first ever race, Jake really wanted to do a 5k and he was looking at doing the Father's Day 5k, which was the following weekend after the Bellin 10k.  I wasn't doing anything, other than working, so I figured what the hell, why not.  So we both registered a few days later and just like that we were doing another race.  The Father's Day 5k was put on by the local YMCA and used to be a 5k and a 10k run in July, but this year, they made a few changes and now offer just a 5k and run it a month earlier.

Training for This Race

I did no specific training for this race as I honestly didn't even have time to do any actually training.  I just did some very relaxed paced runs during the days leading up to the 5k, just to shake out the soreness and keep me fresh.

Prerace

I did a small trade at work to get out a half an hour early, just to make sure I was able to get to the race on time.  So after work, I headed over to Jake's house, picked him up and we were off to the race.  The race started and finished at Appleton North High School, so I was able to take advantage of their track and warmed up on the track.

Nutrition Plan

An hour before the race, I took my usual Anti-Fatigue Caps, Endurance Aminos, and then took my Fully Charged about 10 minutes before the start of the race.

Miles 0-3.1

As soon as the race started I knew I had a chance to win the race outright.  But I was a little surprised with the pace during the first 400 meters or so.  The start of races always takes off like a bat out of hell, but for whatever reason, this race seemed to start like a 100 meter gold medal race.  And in the front of the pack were two younger guys.  After the first 100 meters or so, I got right into my grove and just waited for everyone else to just blow up from starting too hard.  But oddly enough the two guys who pushed the initial pace were holding on.  I began to think maybe I would only be able to come away with a 2nd or 3rd place finish.  But, I told myself just control what I can and just run my own race and let's see what happens.  After the first half mile, I passed one of the two leaders and the overall leader was still a bit ahead of me.  Part of me wondered if this kid was for real, or just pushing himself to the limits until he implodes.  Sure enough, just after the first mile, the leader's pace probably cut in half and I passed right by him.  I was now in the lead.  My goal now, was to keep pushing as hard as I could and see if I can not only hold on for the win, but come away with a new 5k PR.  After the 2nd mile, I was feeling really good.  Like way better than I anticipated feeling.  I decided to push just a little bit harder for the final mile.  The final tenth of a mile finished on the track, so once I was on the track and just put the pedal to the metal.  I finished 1st overall with a new 5k PR of 17:28, 14 seconds faster than my fastest ever 5k.

Post Race

After I finished, I stuck around to cheer on Jake as he finished.  Jake finished in just under 23 minutes, which was over a minute faster than his goal time was.  We then shared a post race beer as we waited for the awards ceremony.  My award was a nice runner statue.  Jake just missed placing in his age group by a few seconds, but still took 4th in his age group.  We stuck around just long enough to learn that neither of us won the $700 grill raffle and then headed home so I could get some sleep before going back to work.

What's on Tap

I still have no clue what is truly on tap for me.  I might do the Madison Marathon in early November....or I might not.  I may do a half marathon in August....or I might not.  I might do a few more 5k's throughout the remainder of summer as part of the Titletown Wellness Race Series for a chance to win some tickets to a Packer Game in December.  But, I do know one thing, I'll keep running to try and "run the year" for my second year in a row.