How NOT to pace a race

So Jess invited me to run a 5 miler out in Winchester yesterday. It seemed like a chill road race. Plus, it claimed to be flat, which I'm always looking for in a road race. The more it's like a track, the better. So Jess, Jamie and I drive up to the local Ford dealership, where the race was supposed to begin. When who do we see but Mr. Tom Derderian himself. Looks like we were all trying to disappear into a small little road race. But to no avail :-)

So we all warmed up together, which was nice, and from the warm-up it did appear that the course was pretty flat. A little sloping, but no big deal. Andrea Gillespie was there, so I thought, "Hmmm...you're in pretty good shape. It's a flat course (your strength). Just go out with her and see how far you can stay with her." So mile 1 flies by and I'm right behind her...I see the mile marker...hit my watch. 5:44. Shit. Well, it was a little downhill... Mile 2 and I'm still pretty close. 6 minutes. Okay...well, it's going to hurt. And then the rolling hills began. And then my ass was officially grass. The group I was hanging onto kept skipping along and then I was on a bike path trying to dodge kids out enjoying the beautiful day. I was very quickly losing speed and concentration. I tried to keep it together as best I could, but I did indeed run a 7 minute mile at the end. Of a 5 mile race. Ouch. Well...2 lessons learned. 1) All meet directors claim that their course is flat. A track is flat. Road races are rarely...
2) Reign it in the first mile. Hopefully, I will run a much smarter race on Sunday. There will certainly be more people there to both keep me sane in the first mile and motivated at the end.

On the bright side, I won 50 bucks, which will pay for my Red Sox ticket tomorrow. A friend got some last minute tickets, so I'll be there tomorrow night. I'll miss y'all at practice, especially as I'm doing a solo workout in the afternoon.