Race Report (of sorts!)
Raheny 5 Mile
How not to 'prepare' for a race 101 incoming.. I had kept a bit of running going over christmas while I was away but it was predominately on treadmills or in savage heat so 6 min kms type stuff and short. I picked up a head cold/cough when I got back so all I could manage was 2 runs last weekend to try run the cold out of me.. and it didn't work. I was left with the cough so left the running off
Then an old big tree fell in the back garden last week and it lashed all day saturday without a break, so yesterday morning was logging and dragging. By the time I stopped to get ready for the race at 2pm I was fairly tired. Threw on the gear and went to to the drawer where I always put the race numbers.. no race number! Searched everywhere, no dice. Fuck sake, 2.30 now, race going off at 3pm and I'm still in the house, so I decided to jump on my bike, cycle up to the race and just run without a number since I was in the gear at this stage. By the time I got there every other runner had finished limbering up and the scrum for the start line was already the length of an entire street, 4000 runners in high spirits and me looking for a friend I had arranged to run with.. no sign of him, but about 4 mins before the gun I spotted a different buddy who I hadn't realised even ran. As we're chatting I told him I had no number, a friend of his heard and said she had a spare left with someone else. A quick call and dash down to the line and all of a sudden I'm somehow striking out with a race number for some financial institution and feeling good! No stretching or any sort of prep done though
Off we go, I was well back from the start so the first km down Assaims Ave was absolute mayhem, people jumping left right and centre to get around slower runners, guys tripping, pushing, but all in good spirits.. I actually found myself enjoying it since I had no target whatsoever in my head, just there to enjoy the race. Left up the hill, left again and you cross the green where the race started , then right down to Howth Road and the race started to stretch out a little. At around 3km I found myself thinking that I was clipping along nicely and enjoying it, trying to stand up straight, loosen the hands etc, I hadn't looked at the watch yet so I decided I wouldn't l look at my watch at all. The next few kms flew by and we were down at the sea front. At this point I decided to keep the pace where I was rather than push as I knew the 750m climb up Watermill Road was coming and I needed to keep something in my legs or the pace would drop off. Left turn into the hill and I put the effort into simply not letting the pace drop, with that my buddy who I had left behind flys by like the bollox was running downhill
Grind to the top of the hill and then its a left along the avenue the race started on (making sure I didn't make the same mistake as last year with the sprint finish to the start line which is not the finish line!), and 3 rights around the green. A big crowd had lined the course from start to finish, alpine bells clanging and the whole lot.. great encouragement down the final straight with the last of what I had in the legs and across the line, glad to be done. The clock had 41:20 odd on it but that was timing the first runners off, I was back from them but not sure how much. When I got home I put in the race number and realised I had 40:23, that a solid 2 mins better than expectation so delighted with that but then the slight tinge of regret for not getting under the 40 min mark. On the other hand my watch is telling me the course was slightly long (or at least I ran it inefficiently) and I was sub 5/kms overall
Splits: 5:00, 4:53, 5:01, 4:55, 4:50, 4:52, 5:05 (hill), 4:56, and 4:35 pace for the extra bit - Avg 4:56/km
Very happy with that, fairly consistent pace and really enjoyable atmosphere and race
Another one of these Raheny 5 manky timber plaque things straight in the bin.. would they ever sort it out with a simple medal!
