Race Report: AJC Peachtree Road Race

Stats/Goals
Distance: 10 km
Location: Lenox Mall to Piedmont Park, Atlanta, GA
Current PR: 44:01, (7/4/2015, AJC PRR, Atlanta GA)
90% Goal: 45:00
50% Goal: 44:00 (new PR, sub-7:00 pace)
10% Goal: 43:00 (top 1000)

Result: 42:02 (https://results.chronotrack.com/event/results/event/event-16223)
GPS: (https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1241115326)
Mile Splits: (2015 in parenthesis)
6:29 (7:03) -0:34
6:24 (6:45) -0:21
6:28 (6:33) -0:05
7:07 (7:23) -0:16
7:09 (7:29) -0:20
6:53 (7:15) -0:22

Summary
My preparation was a lot better this year than last.  I felt so strong going into the race that I was a bit worried my expectations were too high and I was going to burn myself out on the downtown hill (yet again).  I fought through it and wanted to stop for most of the last two miles, but I got there.

Training
I had two huge changes this year to my training:

1. I reduced my miles and increased my pace.  May/June 2015, I ran 46 times for 260 miles at an average pace of 8:55. May/June 2016, I ran 45 times for 214 miles at an average pace of 7:56.
2. In 2015, I did a lot of running inside on a treadmill when it got "too hot".  Now, I try to tough it out on the Greenway where at least it's shaded.

Until I looked at the numbers to write this blog, I didn't realize I had dropped that many miles (nearly 20% less).  I knew I was running significantly faster which is a combination of the lower mileage, me pushing faster more often, and having faster trainees at the ATC training group that I get to run with.

To expand on that last point, I was typically running in the 10-11 min pace range with the group last year.  This put me in an awkward position where I didn't truly get a "long" run in those weeks, so I had to try to either make up for it on Sunday or miss out on a long run completely.  My body also took a lot more of a beating because I don't naturally run in that pace range.  Excluding ITFP runs, I was a bit shy of 200 miles at a 8:24 pace in 2015

The day before most races, I try to get a short, fast workout.  Typically, 0.5mi warmup, 1 mile fast (race pace), 1 mile cooldown.  This year, my 1 mile fast clocked in at 6:35.  I felt strong, I felt awesome, but, most of all, I felt scared.  I was scared how easy it felt (even though my heart rate data supported it).

Pre-Race
I woke up at 4:00, downed a Clif bar, threw on my gear, and drove down to North Springs MARTA. Since I didn't want to run with my handheld, I took a bottle of Gatorade with me which I nursed the hour before the race. (Amusingly, the only thing I changed in this paragraph from last year was that I woke up at 4:00 rather than 4:30)

Skies were clear and the weather felt very nice.  It was a little on the warm side, and the sun wasn't up yet.  I did my standard warm-up running from about D wave to the back nice and easy and doing a few fast striders on the way back.  I waved to a bunch of trainees and other run leads.

Waves A to E Represent!

A corral seemed a lot smaller this year than in the past.  I remembered it extending well beyond where they hang the huge flag at the start and having a small area to run around in.  Instead, the divider between A/B was right under the flag and there was almost no room to move around in A, even 30 mins out from the start.

Race
The first half of the race felt very easy.  And it should, it's downhill.  The first mile a lot faster than last year, which was actually the biggest mile-over-mile difference in last year's race (34 seconds).  I spotted on of my ambassador friends a bit in the distance during the first half and just tried to keep him in sight.  The 5k split (which they added a strip this year!) was 20:05, only 10 seconds off my PR from a month ago, and the second fastest 5k I've ever run.

Seeing that made me very nervous for the second half of the course.  The first half is very generous with a long, easy downhill.  But I was afraid I had taken too much advantage of it.

Climbing Cardiac Hill was a lot more awesome than in recent years.  It wasn't raining, so they actually got to let the patients out of the hospital to cheer the runners on.  It was awesome seeing so many out there.

As usual, downtown was my weakest point.  After climbing Cardiac, there's a bit of a reprieve, but the climbs from the Interstate to Spring (I think?) and then 17th to 10th is just the worst.  I still had my ambassador friend in sight.  He walked through a couple water stops and I was able to catch him and give him a "Let's go" pat on the back to get him back in the game.

I was not actually feeling two-thumbs-up at this point

He passed me back shortly after the turn on 10th, and we started the descent to the finish.  After making it through downtown, I knew I wouldn't have to stop at all on 10th.  Looking at my watch in the closing quarter, I realized I was going to be very close to 42.  I halfheartedly pushed for it and fell a bit short.  All in all, completely please with my effort.

Effort down the stretch

Post Race
Wandering towards Park Tavern, I was tricked into posing with one of the finish pictures.  She even got me to whip out the guns.

Doing my best #BradStrong impression

Best part about being fast: you're one of the first ones to the post-race party.  No one in line for beer and first picks at the food.  Shortly after I got there, the race and elevated warnings levels to red.  There were 30-some heat related injuries on the course.  While unfortunate, I'm glad it wasn't more.

Some of the awesome runners I hang out with every weekend

PRs were in short supply due to the weather.  You may notice I didn't really touch on it much, because I didn't really feel hugely impacted by it.  There were a few stagnant parts of the course, but between getting an early start in wave A and being acclimated to afternoon running, I didn't feel like the heat impacted my performance a whole lot.

To circle back a moment, I primarily run in the afternoons.  Sometimes, that means 90-100 degree weather in June in Atlanta.  Instead of holing up in a gym, like I've done in the past, I sucked it up, got hydrated, and went out and ran outside.  Some runs I had to cut short because it got that uncomfortable, but I feel all that effort paid off in spades at the race.

I was very confident I had finished in the Top 1000.  When I had looked last year, the cutoff had been between 42:30 and 43:30 for the past five years.  This year, with the weather, 1000th place was 44:38.  I ended jumping up into the top 600 overall.

I AM THE 1%!!!

The night after race and into the following day, I've had really back neck and shoulder pain on my left side.  Dr. Google tells me this is probably related to inadequate warm-up, lack of strength training, or poor form.  All of these are very real possibilities.  I know I did very little upper body warm-up, I've been slacking on all of my strength work lately, and running without my handheld might have made my body got a little wonky.  Something to keep an eye on going forward.

Oh, hey, it's that thing I've been wanting the past few years:

Got my mug!

Conclusion
I accomplished everything I thought I would be able to do last year and then some.  In terms of pace, this PR jump was my biggest PR since 2014 when I dropped my half from 1:51:35 to 1:40:56.

#YearOfThe5k is in full swing.  The two remaining target races on my calendar are Jog Days of Summer (8/6) and the Chicago 5k (10/8, the day before the Marathon).