Today being the 4th of July, it is another day to enjoy the freedoms that we have as Americans. And as part of that freedom, we can decide to go or do just about anything we want to; within reason.
Within reason for me today was to head over the mountain to Altoona, PA to run in the Hollidaysburg YMCA 15k. There was a 5k available, but crazy as I am I decided to do the big boy.
I haven't run a 15k in almost three years. The last one I did was the Flight 93 Memorial 15k in November, 2004. That was a brutal course. This one was pitched as "flat and furiously fast". I'll agree with half of it. It was fast, but flat? Yes and no. There were some hills there. You could barely make them out, but they were there.
Despite the obstacles, which included me not really being thoroughly prepared to do a race of this distance right now, and umpiring behind home plate last night, which is killer on the legs, I went over there this morning with the intention of doing a sub-1:10. 1:09:30 puts me on a Boston pace, and since I'm so focused on Boston that has become my measuring stick. I thought it was a reasonable goal. Turns out, I was right.
Came across the line in 1:06:19. An excellent time and a new PR for a 15k, by over twelve minutes. There is no doubt I am as good a runner as I have ever been. There is no doubt I'm as close to Boston as I have ever been. And there is no doubt that today was a good day. Despite the good, I still only placed 4th in my age group and 21st overall. Now, I've PR'ed 4 times in my last 5 races. But I don't count the 5k I ran the week after the marathon. I went with a friend as support and battled tendinitis that day. No medal today. That's kind of a new thing for me of late. I run for the medals. But it's not always about the medals. Happy Birthday America.
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