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Fall Foliage 5k

October 12, 2013 (Morning)

Exercise Type: Run

Comments:
Tired when I woke up didnt really get to sleep in today. Got ready and headed into town for the race. Nice and sunny when I got there. Apparently I signed up twice. At first the guy thought there were two Ben Yavitts. I told him no thats definitely me just twice. He suggested I just do the course two times lol. Had plenty of time to get in a jog with Cromer, and do some drills. We checked out the course since I was a little unclear. The hill at the end to make it 5k looked pretty tough as well, wasnt really expecting that. Felt really good warming up, just like the old days. Striders felt real legit. There were some people there that looked pretty legit, I was excited because then there would be some competition. I didnt know what kinda of shape I would be in, but I knew I would probably be near the front.

Race started off right in the town common. Cromer and I moved to the front quickly. It then turned down the side of Amherst College and went in the back entrance. Felt soo good going down the hill I was right in front. Real smooth. At that point, two other guys moved up and as we came into the parking lot, we separated off. Stuck with them as we wound around the tennis courts (Prof Muthu was playing tennis this morning as we ran by). Came through the first mile at 5:35, and at that point I started to wonder how this was gonna turn out... I felt great up until then. The two guys in front broke off and kept their pace. I slowed down significantly in the trails which paralleled the bike path. At some point on the roots I rolled my left ankle a little. Didnt hurt too much at the time, but I slowed down a little just to be careful. The trails were really beautiful though and felt like "real cross". Popped out onto the bike path and surged to the 2 mile mark. At that point, a kid from Amherst College caught me, and we were at 11:50, so right around 6 min pace. He was looking strong and I knew I was slipping, so I stuck with him till the end of the trail. Came off the trail really slowly, legs werent used to this at all. At that point it was straight uphill to the finish... That hill sucked I barely remember it. COming into the finish was tough as well since we swong back downhill, and I couldnt really open up at all. Tired when I finished. 4th overall, missed out on the awards. Beat Cromer though. Time is just so unfamiliar to what shape I used to be in... When I finished, my ankle really tightened up and started to feel pretty crappy. The inside tendon got kinda fucked up. Ahh just like the good old days. No big rehab that sucker and get back out there.

Did a short cool down with Cromer since my ankle didnt feel great. When we got back, got to eat and chill with his friend Nicole who also ran the race. Met a lot of people at the race, through Ithaca and Case connections. Amherst is such a diverse and friendly town.

Overall a great morning and a nice welcome back to road races. This was my first race since the Greater Cleveland Championships aka "All-City" back in February. It was Cromer's first race in 2 years. Road races are a lot of fun, but it is going to get a while to get used to the slower times (Seriously, at this point last year, I could run about 3 minutes faster...). Got a free cup and coffee mug as well today.

Essentials: Stretch

Stretched lightly while eating. Tried to move around my ankle because it was getting pretty tight. When I got home I made an ice pack out of a sponge. I will ice on and off today and see how it feels tomorrow, maybe I can just do another crossfit. I couldnt find my ice cup... Maybe Dannie took it. Or its still at the house. If anyone at the XCFH is reading this, can you check the freezer and see if my ice cup is in there? I should be in the side door, next to those old ass frozen veggies that have been there for like 3 years.

This is motivation to get faster and enter more races. Now I remember how awesome road races are.