Snowman Stampede 10 Miler Race Report

This was the third and final installment of the local Winter Distance Series.  I signed up for the long series (10k, 10 mi, 10 mi) hoping that it would keep me motivated to run.  I think it did.  I had fun at the races (it helps the weather was amazing each time) and I saw improvement with each race.  I didn't set any PRs, but I didn't expect to, being so close after a major injury.  It was nice to be on the same course each time, as that made comparing races really easy.  I would definitely sign up for the series in the future.

That being said, we were really lucky that it wasn't freezing out or snowing.  I wore shorts and a tank top for the final race and now I have tan lines.  Sweet!

Pre-Race
I did better this time, getting there a tiny bit early.  I had my usual 100 calories of First Endurance Liquid Shot with some of their Pre-Race mixed in.  I did a 10 min warmup.  It should have been more like 15-20, but hey, its better than the 5 min I did the month prior!

Race Strategy
Last month's 10 miler was a bit of a disaster.  I was controlled through the first 5 miles but then I ran too fast after the turn around, partially because I felt good and partially to catch up with my friends.  I then wanted to die after 7.5 miles and found myself in negotiations with myself to complete the race.  Not awesome.  I also carried a small container of Liquid Shot with me and took big gulps of it at mile 5 and 7.5.  I don't know if this contributed to my poor performance and my stomach also wasn't thrilled with being hit with a surge of calories all at once.  Also: it was a pain to carry my hand-held water bottle AND the LS flask.

This time I wanted to start out conservatively to mile 5, then s-l-o-w-l-y increase pace.  I also mixed ~300 calories into my hand-held with water for more consistent but diluted calorie intake.

Race
Not a ton to report.  I'm glad I wore a tank top and shorts.  I warmed up with sleeves on as well and ditched those before the race started.  Good call, because it was pretty warm out.

I was very conservative, keeping my HR down around 155 bpm for the first 5 miles.  I was shooting for an 11:00 pace but I was actually a bit faster.  I stayed on plan and increased my HR to ~160 for miles 6 - 7, 165 to mile 8 - 9, and than ran as hard as I could for the final mile. 

The result: I finished strong and didn't die.  There was no negotiating with myself.  I finished nearly 3 min faster than the previous race, at a pace 16 seconds/mile faster.  And I felt like it was a good, solid effort and I left it out there during that last mile.

Success!