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Faster as a Master

I ran the Monumental Mile as a Master for the first time on Thursday. It's not that I am new to Masters racing. I haven't race the mile in three years, last time was right before my 40th birthday.

The mile scares and challenges me. If you can't run fast, run long - right? Well, that's what I do...but then there's the whole mile thing. Basically everybody runs it. Like 30+ from my team alone, plus other friends from clubs and other teams. 

So I did the track workouts that were supposed to help. I couldn't get my head in the right place. It didn't help that my open water swim on Monday set off an allergy reaction that I am still recovering from.

There were a lot of expectations around this race after my half marathons and 5K and 5 mile races since Ironman. Both mine and coach's. His were bigger than mine. I didn't believe (really) in either of them. That might have been part of the problem.

I got to the race in plenty of time since I work downtown and the race is two blocks from my office. I had time to change at the Y, buy a new hat at the downtown running store since I forgot one, and pick up my packet before most people even got there. After some team pictures and such it was time to head out for warmup. I did my three miles the way that the team had talked about on Tuesday. I double-checked that there was a timing mat at the start and it wouldn't only be gun time. I lined up with some teammates that are only a bit faster than I am (or a lot, depending on the distance). The gun went off. I crossed the mat and started my watch. I thought I was managing effort, but dang the first quarter mile was far...and then the second I was sucking wind...which was what warmup was supposed to prevent. I knew from the clocks that my time had slipped. I held on through the third quarter and ran what I had for the fourth. I came across at 9:02 on the clock...so I wanted to get my official time...I went over there and it was 8:59:48 - yay for under 9 (albeit barely and not enough to survive rounding).



Happy at the time even though I had fallen short of the goals. Well short. Disappointment hung in the air even as people were congratulating me on the PR...especially a 41 second PR at the mile. But I knew it wasn't enough. I hadn't been able to catch a teammate that I can outrun at half marathon either, she finished 3 seconds ahead of me. 

The next day I had a meltdown. I am still working though that. But in the end I ran a PR by 41 seconds and I am #fasterasamaster. Still slow as molasses.

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