Like Fine Wine

The 4th of July 15K can be tricky for me to to run well. This is a race that I have run maybe 4 or 5 times over the years. I guess we are out of town a lot for this one, or maybe I am usually just plain lazy on 4th of July. When I have run it and had "racing" on my brain, I have failed miserably. Maybe it is the distance or the course. Maybe it is just me, but if I am racing this race I almost always have gone out too fast only to die at the end and ruin the rest of the day with runners gut. Being in July, it is also a time when I am usually just not in shape to really race the 9.3 miles around Goleta/ Noleta. The moral of the story for the 4th of July 15K is Jana just can't "race" this one.

So, today I showed up with my normal shoes that are nice and stinky dirty from my recent trots around the Wilcox with Winnie. I didn't label myself with my SBRR shirt. I didn't warm up or do any strides. I didn't really have a plan. I didn't even feel a twinge of nerves jogging over to the the start. Why? Because, of course, I wasn't racing. I wasn't going to make it hurt. I was there to have a good time and run it. 9.3 miles is a distance I can easily run so what the heck! In fact, when the race started I was totally unaware in my mind that it was a race with a start and a finish and a clock going. Perfect!

At about mile 1.5 I had lost Gary and had the happy fortune to catch up to a runner that I thought was Paula's friend. Turns out she, Kelly, was visiting from Redding and had only met Paula while walking to the start. There is something about latching on to someone and pushing through the miles. Kelly was a good one too. She had lots to say and didn't seem to mind that I did too. The 9.3 just clicked by. Not once did I feel like I was struggling to keep the pace. We stopped for water when it was offered and we talked almost constantly for the 9.3 miles taking turns with keeping it going. My cardio system was relaxed and happy. I am so glad that I had Kelly there to keep me from being tempted into going faster though. My tendons and joints are just not in shape to be running a 15K much faster than I did today.

According to my Garmin, the "race" measured 9.45 miles with an average pace of 7.27 per mile. I know I didn't start the watch right when the gun went off and of course, the official time will reflect a 15K which is 9.3 miles. Even though I really don't care too much about my official time and place, I know I will spend some time looking it over later today when it is all posted on line and have no regrets. In my little world, 7.30ish minute miles were just fine for today and that is even without kicking at the end like I do when I am racing.

Running is so much more fun now that I have gotten to the point where I can just run races and keep it at a decent pace. The older I get, the better I get mentally and physically. My times hover around what I was doing 6 years ago, so I am not slowing down just yet. Like fine wine, my running habit is getting better with age.