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| Somewhat Happy times at the start |
Placement: 2nd in the 55-59 30th overall
Results: Here
Race Website: Here
Weather: mid 30sF, 10 mph+ breeze from the north
Garmin Dump: Here
Previous Years: [2022] [2021] [2019] [2018] [2014]
| Mile | Time | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8:44 | Crowded start. Had to do a lot of navigating |
| 2 | 8:50 | Cleared up, but first half of the mile was fairly congested |
| 3 | 8:57 | Definitely not my day. The turnaround can't come soon enough |
| 4 | 9:12 | Can I rebound? A bit of headwind though. Just trying to finish at this point |
| 5 | 9:13 | Just picking up milestones in the distance and trying to reach them |
| 6 | 9:23 | Felt like I was running a lot faster here |
| 6.19 | 1:37 | Finally, finished. |
| Total Miles: 6.20 - 55:58 | ||
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| Packet Pickup at Gardner Village |
Introduction
One of the St Patrick's Day race traditions for me is doing OnHillEvents' Lucky 13 Race. I've done this race several times over the past decade. The race, however, has changed a bit over time -- different locations throughout the northern Utah area.
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| Normally where the race is held |
Like the past several years, this year's race was held at Gardner Village -- a mere 1.75 miles from my house. It makes it super convenient and I know the course well; doing many of my long runs on Sundays along the course.
I had gotten a pretty good deal on the race from the race organizer's Black Friday sale and given the familiarity with the race, it made it a no-brainer to attend.
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| Pre-race mayhem |
The Race
Packet pickup was strongly encouraged for Friday and given that Gardner Village is less than 2 miles from my house, I made the jaunt there after my work day was done. There was a bit of a line-up but overall, it was a quick in-and-out experience. It also saved myself anxiety getting my bib the day of the race.
Normally the race starts and ends at the shopping center. But given that just days before the race, the underpass that leads from the shopping center to the bike trail was flooded, the race was held about a quarter of a mile down the trail from the shopping center. The starting area isn't as elegant as the shopping center but it did save us the misfortunate of having to go into ankle deep water at the start of the race.
Coming into the race, I knew it would be a long shot for me to turn in a decent time. I have some posterior tibilias tendonitis and I was coming off a week of no running. Ever since Vegas (and even before), I haven't been in peek shape and my running has felt labored, and honestly, not coming easy.
Normally, the race starts off with the half marathon, followed by the 10K runners (me) and the 5K. As the racers started to congregate to line up, I presumed that they were all half marathoners. From previous experiences I would start about 5 - 10 minutes later.
Long story short -- I was wrong.
Suffice to say I was one of the last ones to start. And given that the race was being run on a standard-issue bike trail with nearly 700 runners -- it meant a very congested start.
So I spent the first mile navigating my way around walkers and slower runners. They were pretty much occupying the entire lane too; so I was doing a lot of running in the dirt on the side of the trail or gently trying to merge my way through shoulder-to-shoulder runners.
I knew it was going to be a tough day, but this wasn't how I was hoping I'd start the day.
The first mile came in at 8:44. I expected to be slow but I was also okay with it given my current level of fitness.
The race crowd begin to thin, but also at this point, I was dealing with the 5K lead pack coming the other way. Any passing lane I felt like I could take suddenly was blocked off. Still I was okay with it.
Once I passed through the mile marker (perfectly placed at 1.55 miles), the crowd thinned out and I could no longer use crowds as any sort of a justification of my pace.
I had no idea who my competition was (although a friend of mine was running the 10K who is in my age group -- who is also MUCH faster than me), so I knew at best I was shooting for 2nd in my age group.
To be honest, at this point I knew I was already pushing too hard. The pace should've been easy, but it wasn't coming easily. Mile 2 came in at 8:50. Consistent but disappointing. But I was conserving energy, right?
Despite the freezing (or near freezing temperatures) the running and air temperature were perfect. In the first quarter mile of the race, however, the bridge had a very slippery sheen of ice on it. Fortunately that was the only complaint I had about the course. Little did I know, I also had a bit of a tailwind to start the race.
As we sped our way south near the Sandy Golf Course, I couldn't help but hope that the course was short. News flash it wasn't. I was just so cooked and I was working hard. I felt like I was running 8:15 or so, but the effort was closer to 9 minute per mile.
Finally I saw the 2nd aid station and the 10K turn around. It was at 3.10 miles and I just wanted the race to end. My pace was now in the 9 minute per miles and what should've been an easy 2-hour half marathon pace was now a gut buster.
I was frustrated with myself and I should've been able to pick up the pace. And now, I had a bit of a headwind to contend with.
I saw maybe one person ahead of me who might me in my age division but in a way, I was beyond caring. My time was rubbish, I hated running, I am going to quit racing -- you know the drill. My head was telling me I was running 8:15's but my body was shuffling along at 9+ minute miles.
Mile 4 saw more degradation to my time.
On the plus side, seeing the outgoing 10K runners spurred me on a bit and once in a while I'd overtake someone. I had about a 3-minute buffer of when I started and when the race actually began. So I really didn't have a clue as to where I stood with other people. My goal at this point was to try and rebound.
My tendon was causing problems, but nothing that would stop me. I know it does impact my push-off but I'd be using that as a lame excuse to my race time today.
I kept working on biting off chunks of the course. Get to mile 4. Get to the 5K turn around. Get to 1 mile left. Just little milestones to keep my head in the game. I was using every trick in the book.
Mile 5 came along and it wasn't much better than 4. Why was this so hard today? I had been training at 8:15 pace all winter.
Frustration was mounting and I really wanted to just stop and walk. An occasional runner passed me, but for the most part, I didn't have anything to worry about in regards to my placing except to hold on.
Mile 6 was the slowest yet: 9:22. Please let's just end this race.
I couldn't even really muster a final push in the final quarter mile. I had nothing. The last quarter mile was dotted with spectators and I used their motivation to push me forward. I did straighten up my form for the camera people and sped under the OnHillEvents arch and I finally completed the 10K race.
Conclusion
So the writing on my race performance was already predicted before I completed my first 100 yards. I had a lot of things going against me:
1) I was not in peak shape. The last 3 - 4 weeks my running has felt flat and uninspired.
1) I was not in peak shape. The last 3 - 4 weeks my running has felt flat and uninspired.
2) I wasn't really in the mood to race / run hard
3) I have an injury (that sort of flared up in the race but ultimately effects my push-off)
4) My last 3 - 4 races have resulted in slower times than predicted.
I do feel like something is wrong. Either I am over-trained, dealing with some sort of physical problem, or struggling with the effects of aging.
I grabbed my medal and found a seat away from other people and just sat there -- disappointed. Where was all my hard earned fitness that I had banked over the winter?
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| Glad to be done! |
Eventually I composed myself, and wandered amongst people -- congratulating my fellow competitors and checking in with friends. I also grabbed my camera and got photos of people. I've had bad races in the past and I'll have them again in the future but a string of them is hard to swallow.
The weather had been threatening rain, sleet and snow but we caught a break. For a brief moment during the race it had snowed but it wasn't anything to be concerned about. I had brought some extra clothes to the finish line and the jacket I had got me through to the awards ceremony. I had gotten 2nd in my age group -- my competitor 1st. I was hoping he'd take the top 3 and I think at one point he was in the top 3 (which would've put me in 1st).
Post race refreshments were bananas (very green), cheese strings, oranges and granola bars. Pretty much standard fare. There were 3 aid stations for the 10K (you hit the 5K one twice).
Other than the start, the race was well organized. The mile markers were spot on, the course measured up, plenty of marshals and markings on the course to indicate directions to run (which I already knew, having run the course many times).
The medals were nice too. A pretty nice St Patrick's Day theme medal. The shirt was also cool, although I am not a fan of the cotton blend shirts.
So what comes next? I am not sure. There were times in this race where I seriously wanted to retire from racing -- and even running. I put in a lot of work over the winter and my first serious race went very well -- and subsequently the rest -- not so much. Just a steady decline into the abyss.
I'll have to sort things out. The obvious factors are that I am probably burned out and two the tendonitis issue is holding me back.
Fortunately, I have a bit of a break coming up from racing. I may take some time to regroup.
Upcoming Races
03/22: 2025 Vineyard City Gold Rush 5K -- Vineyard, UT (Confirmed)
04/26: 2025 Salt Lake City Half Marathon - Salt Lake City, UT (Confirmed)
02/22: 2026 Las Vegas Half Marathon - Las Vegas, NV (Confirmed)
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