My second race of the year was another local race, the Davis Lucky Run. Last year I did the half marathon but they did not offer it this year so I went with the 10 miler which was the longest distance they offered. There was also a 7K and 7 miler which is great for those that want to run something shorter. My plan was to follow Coach Dawn's paces for the race, which I tried for the most part, but I felt pretty darn good and went faster than I probably should have, especially in the last few miles.
There was no packet pickup prior to race day, everyone was to pick up their bibs and shirt the morning of the race. The race started at 8:10am. Again with it being a local race, it was nice to not have to worry about logistics too much. I knew exactly where the race was, but I did go a little earlier than I probably needed to, since I had to pick up my bib and shirt. It was easy to pick up and I just went back to my car to hang out until about 10 minutes until start time.
Here's the shirt we got. I like how it says "Got Lucky!" on the back.
I saw some porta potties that weren't too busy and used them before heading to the start line. I wasn't too happy when there wasn't any hand sanitizer, however they did have the sinks where you step on the pedal for the water to come out, but there was barely any water left. Not cool, but at least I washed my hands somewhat.
Coach Dawn's race plan had me going @ 8:55-9:10 pace for the first 4 miles. Then for the last 6 miles @ 8:40-50. It was a great morning for a run and was about 50 degrees at the start. We started right on time and were off and running at 8:10am. I usually tend to go out too fast but knowing the pace I needed to hit helped, and I slowed myself down. My first mile came in at 8:46/mi pace.
Since there are multiple distances there are these areas where the organizers did a great job of labeling which way you were to go. The volunteers did a nice job of cheering us on too.
My first mile was still a little fast for the pace range I should've been in so I tried to slow it down.
Mile 2 - 8:48/mi
Mile 3 - 8:48/mi
My favorite part of the race was this part of the trail because it was so beautiful. I wasn't expecting running part on dirt trail but it was a pleasant surprise. It was so pretty out.
Into mile 4 and 5 was my least favorite part of the race. Running on this county road was not fun and worse we had to turn back around and endure part of what we had just ran.
Mile 4 -8:43
It was really nice to hit the turn around to head back at this point.
Mile 5 - 8:40
Mile 6 was were I was to go a bit faster in the plan. I had already been hitting my paces a little faster than I should have so I figured I'd kick it up a bit especially since I felt good.
Mile 6 - 8:30/mi
Mile 7 - 8:32/mi
Mile 8 - 8:24/mi
Mile 9 - 8:36/mi
Mile 10 - 8:28/mi
My Garmin has me going a little longer .08 at 7:08/mi. I finished strong and was happy to cross that finish!
I clearly didn't stick to Coach's plan with hitting faster paces. Oops. I really couldn't help it. It was so hard to do at this race. When I checked the results, I did somehow manage 1st place in my age group. Now that was a first! I was pretty happy about that. :)
There was a good spread of bagels, bars, water, corn crisps, etc. at the finish area for runners.
Some booths to browse.
There was even free beer! I think that was a first unless I just missed it last time.
Here's the medal along with my age group award medal. :)
Overall, it was another great race put on by
A Change of Pace Foundation. These local races are awesome. I love that they are put on well and that they are smaller in size. Small enough that I actually have a chance to place in my AG. :) Hehe, we'll see how long that lasts. I was very happy with how the race went. Next time though I'll listen to Coach, especially since I found out running fast early can make you peak earlier than you want. Here's hoping I didn't ruin my chances for a PR at the American River Parkway Half in April.
Happy running!!
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