2016 South Davis Recreation Center 5K Race Recap - Bountiful Utah

Official Time: 24:56
Placement: 2nd in age group
Results: Here
Race Website: Here
Weather: Upper 30's, no wind
Garmin Dump: Here

Mile	Time	Comments
1	7:47	Gentle downhill here. Hemmed in at the start
2	8:08	A bit of climbing
3	8:31	A grind up a slow hill. End can't come fast enough.
3.07	0:29	Sprint to the finish
Total Miles: 3.07 -  24:56

Introduction

One of my annual traditions, each Thanksgiving is to do the South Davis Recreation Center's 5K, located in Bountiful.  They continue to put on a good race that is high on payoffs and low on price.  For $20 you basically get a finisher's medal, an accurate course with professional timing, a t-shirt and usually a bunch of stuff in your swag bag.  They also have your typical post race refreshments.

The biggest treat for me is that the 5K tends to be not super competitive (most runners do the 10K) and I can easily snag a Thanksgiving pie.

The Race 

I rolled into the race just after 7 AM and grabbed my shirt.  It was easy in and easy out -- well organized on all fronts.  I wound up sitting around for a bit, attaching my bib and using the restroom.

Around 7:30 AM I decided to do my warm up.  I felt super sluggish and I had a bit of panic: was this going to be a bad race?

Pre-race photo of mile #1

After a mile warmup I returned back to the warm confines of the recreation center and used the bathroom a final time.

The race started a little late -- as usual.  Generally, this race does start a few minutes late and I had toyed with the idea of wearing a light running jacket to keep warm, but I decided to tough it out.  I went in shorts, throw-away gloves and a long sleeved shirt.  Turns out that was a fantastic choice.

The first mile was congested -- well at least the first 1/4 of a mile.  The race starts off in the parking lot and it is fairly narrow path.  Also add in a bunch of kids and slower runners who weren't instructed to line up according to pace and you have an accident sort of waiting to happen.  However, after about a 100 yards the race opens up.

The first mile is also a gentle downhill, which helped me get what felt like a fairly easy 7:47.

After the 1st mile marker, the race goes uphill slightly and at that point it always gets hard.  The hill that is usually around 1.33 didn't seem to materialize for me and I was still running what I felt like was strong.  I was happy to see mile 2 come in at 8:10ish.

The last mile is a grind.  It is a gentle climb.  It is also at this point that you are running along a fairly busy road.  Luckily there isn't much traffic but you do have to pay attention to some of the traffic lights.

I was still holding my pace pretty well but as usual working the hill got the best of me.

I still had plenty of gas left at the end but my top speed definitely wasn't there.

Conclusion

After the race, I wound up grabbing a drink and grabbing warmer clothes from my car (it is so nice to have a low stress 5K).  I made my way back and waited (quite a while) for the awards.  They had self-serve kiosks, so I was pretty happy to see I had placed 2nd in my age group.

I grabbed some food and wound up socializing a bit with some runners I knew.  The 10K was very competitive so I am glad I opted for the 5K.  I wound up snagging a cherry pie, a ribbon and of course a pretty sweet finisher's medal.

Overall, I felt like my time should've been better.  I felt like my time was going to be slightly faster than last year's (24:30-ish), but alas it wasn't.  Time for me to focus on dropping some weight and working on my speed work again.

All in all, I had a good time and definitely worth the $20.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2014 Sandy City Turkey Trot 5K Race Recap / Review

Official Time: 24:22
Placement: 12th (men) out of 60 (2nd out of 7 in 40 - 45 age group)
Results: Here
Race Website:Here
Weather: Low 60's -- windy! Probably 20mph southern gusts.

Mile	Time	Comments
1	7:25	A little wind at my back, felt nice and controlled
2	7:57	Wind in my face, suffering
3.1	8:54	Hurting all the way in. Lots of wind.
Total Miles: 3.06

Introduction

It has been a while since I've done a 5K.  The last one I did was the Sandy City Midnight Moon back in early August.  I've done a lot more longer races (I've been on a serious racing / mileage binge of late), so my speed is noticeable down.  I didn't have super high expectations of myself, but I certainly felt I could show up and run a decent race.

For $20, I got a pretty nice t-shirt (cotton though) and a good race experience.  Also it is about 10 minutes from my home, so it is a low stress event.

Also, faithful readers will recall I ran the race last year in 22:44 (see my recap from last year here).

The Race

The race started at 9AM and I rolled in at 8:15.  I think I was one of the first ones there.  In fact, when I arrived I thought maybe I was mistaken on the race date.  But since I had picked up my bib and shirt on the way home from work on Friday night, I knew I wasn't mistaken.

The race was held at Lone Peak Park and it is really a beautiful park.  Clean bathrooms, working drinking fountains, baseball fields, and a pavilion.  It is also located within the shadows of Lone Peak, one of the highest peaks along the Wasatch Front.

With the sun peaking up, I managed to get a few pictures:

Lone Peak is in the middle of the picture

I did a quick shake out run of about a mile and did some drills. For a 5K race, I left my phone in my car, but the route this race takes isn't terribly spectacular.  You start in the park and quickly exit into a subdivision.  In the first mile you do a slow but steady climb before ducking onto a bike trail.  You follow the bike trail (that has some serious rolling hills) for about half of a mile before making a lap around a Dewey Bluth Park.

After the lap, you come back the way you took with the exception is that you have to make a long circle around Lone Peak Park.  All the way back, I had a pretty good wind in my face, which definitely slowed me up.  About 20 minutes after the race, the wind really picked up but I think we were spared the worst of it.

My goal was to try and run 7:30 - 7:45's the entire race.  I was largely successful for the first two, but the last mile was just as tough as the last mile in a half marathon.  The wind was in my face and it seemed like every little hill felt like a mountain.   My legs were dead and my once comfortable breathing was labored.  People think that the distance of a 5K makes them "easy" but in some ways, a 5K is just as tough as a half because the pace is much more intense.

This was a pretty small race with about 140 people.  There were a ton of 5Ks in the area and I suspect they all take from each other.  There are only so many runners in Salt Lake.

Conclusion

To say that I was disappointed with my time would be an understatement.  Granted, I've done very very little speed work all summer and the wind was tough, but clearly I am getting a lot slower.  I need to drop a few pounds, get some more focused speed work training in and squeeze in another 5K or two.  I forget how tough these races can be.

I was happy to see that I placed in my age group and gladly accepted an award.  I like the Sandy races because they make everything a snap.  You pick up your race results card within seconds of finishing, if you place in your age group you grab your prize and you are free to go.  No fanfare and drama waiting around.  Technically, I could've been on the road by 9:30, but I wound up eating a banana and socializing with random people post race.  I took off at 10AM after most people had already left.

I'll definitely do this race again.  For $20, it is a good workout and offers a decent opportunity at placing in your age group.