Brian Baresch
Nice race, nice folks, good result.
The Fort Worth Runners Club no-frills races are usually a lot of fun. I hadn't raced a 10K in some
time; in the meantime I've lost a bit of weight and gained speed, so I figured a PR (beating a 44:54
from back in March) was a given -- I figured on 43:15 or so. But I didn't feel all that great this
week, and when I got to the starting line I realized I was wearing my regular training shoes rather
than my lighter-weight NB 831s. Oh well ... should still be a good race.
I didn't see the Dallas/Irving folks I like to pace off of, but one of the other competitors was the
Big Guy, my friendly rival from races past. He beat me every time we met last year; I've had his
number this year, but he's been doing speedwork twice a week so we figured it would be close. I also
greeted Cora, a speedster who I figured would win the women's division.
The course goes north through Trinity Park for just under a mile, then hops onto the river trail,
goes back south past the finish area and southwest for a couple more miles, turns around again and
heads for the finish. Big Guy said he'd pace off me, but we both went out too fast (close to 5K
pace); I knew we were too fast when I realized we were in front of Cora! I counted the runners at
the turnaround and figured I was in 25th place or so. Cora passed us before long, and BG went after
her. Well, he likes those fast starts ... first mile was
6:39, about 18 seconds faster than I intended.
About here the second-place woman, Noreen, caught up to me, and we ran together for a couple of
miles, both about 6:58, so I felt pretty good. Somewhere in mile 4 we caught the Big Guy, who had
lost touch with Cora. The turnaround was close to mile 4 (they had the mile marker facing the wrong
way, so the splits were off), then BG, who I had thought would fade after his fast start, found his
reserve fuel tank and took off again, opening up about a 15-meter lead. We dropped the Noreen
somewhere along in there.
BG kept his lead, with an older guy in between us, and I had to push to keep him in sight. I passed
mile 5 in 34:50 and figured it was time. In the sixth mile the trail makes a couple of dips under
two bridges, where the good hill runners get separated from the bad. At the first dip I caught the
older guy, then focused on the Big Guy; he can't possibly have enough left, can he? On the way down
the second dip I caught him, and on the climb up the other side I passed him. We made encouraging
noises at each other. I figured I had to go into my 200m sprint to hold him off; too late I
realized it was still at least 500m to the finish. Well, nothing to be done about it now. Turns out
BG's fast first miles used up his kick; he didn't challenge me after the dip. Somewhat to my
surprise I still had Cora in sight and wondered if I could catch her too. As I suspected: NO. She
had my number by 20 seconds.
I crossed the line in 42:35, a PR by more than 2 minutes. Woo hoo! I do wonder whether the course
was short -- later I jogged the last half-mile both directions with my Fitsense, which I just
calibrated yesterday, and it had the bit between the 6 marker and the finish as .17 mile. If the
rest of the course was accurate, that meant it was 250 feet short -- which would mean I still have a
pretty good PR. Heck, I'll take it. But next time I'll look for a certified course.
Afterward I chatted with some friends and co-workers and watched Cora pick up her winner's swag; the
awards were authentic Mercury dimes from the 1920s. Two of my co-workers have had a friendly rivalry
going back at least 30 races in several states. Today the one who until now always finished second
beat the other one for the first time. Speedwork pays off! It was a touching moment.
Post-race food was apples, bananas, corn chips, cookies, Powerade, soda and beer. Auto traffic
wasn't a problem because we were on the trail for most of the way, though we had to share the path
with non-racing bikers and pedestrians, not a real big deal. Points off for misplaced mile markers
and some potholes in the first mile.
Two and a half stars. Brian Bob says check it out.
--
Brian P. Baresch Fort Worth, Texas, USA Professional editing and proofreading
If you're going through hell, keep going. --Winston Churchill
The Fort Worth Runners Club no-frills races are usually a lot of fun. I hadn't raced a 10K in some
time; in the meantime I've lost a bit of weight and gained speed, so I figured a PR (beating a 44:54
from back in March) was a given -- I figured on 43:15 or so. But I didn't feel all that great this
week, and when I got to the starting line I realized I was wearing my regular training shoes rather
than my lighter-weight NB 831s. Oh well ... should still be a good race.
I didn't see the Dallas/Irving folks I like to pace off of, but one of the other competitors was the
Big Guy, my friendly rival from races past. He beat me every time we met last year; I've had his
number this year, but he's been doing speedwork twice a week so we figured it would be close. I also
greeted Cora, a speedster who I figured would win the women's division.
The course goes north through Trinity Park for just under a mile, then hops onto the river trail,
goes back south past the finish area and southwest for a couple more miles, turns around again and
heads for the finish. Big Guy said he'd pace off me, but we both went out too fast (close to 5K
pace); I knew we were too fast when I realized we were in front of Cora! I counted the runners at
the turnaround and figured I was in 25th place or so. Cora passed us before long, and BG went after
her. Well, he likes those fast starts ... first mile was
6:39, about 18 seconds faster than I intended.
About here the second-place woman, Noreen, caught up to me, and we ran together for a couple of
miles, both about 6:58, so I felt pretty good. Somewhere in mile 4 we caught the Big Guy, who had
lost touch with Cora. The turnaround was close to mile 4 (they had the mile marker facing the wrong
way, so the splits were off), then BG, who I had thought would fade after his fast start, found his
reserve fuel tank and took off again, opening up about a 15-meter lead. We dropped the Noreen
somewhere along in there.
BG kept his lead, with an older guy in between us, and I had to push to keep him in sight. I passed
mile 5 in 34:50 and figured it was time. In the sixth mile the trail makes a couple of dips under
two bridges, where the good hill runners get separated from the bad. At the first dip I caught the
older guy, then focused on the Big Guy; he can't possibly have enough left, can he? On the way down
the second dip I caught him, and on the climb up the other side I passed him. We made encouraging
noises at each other. I figured I had to go into my 200m sprint to hold him off; too late I
realized it was still at least 500m to the finish. Well, nothing to be done about it now. Turns out
BG's fast first miles used up his kick; he didn't challenge me after the dip. Somewhat to my
surprise I still had Cora in sight and wondered if I could catch her too. As I suspected: NO. She
had my number by 20 seconds.
I crossed the line in 42:35, a PR by more than 2 minutes. Woo hoo! I do wonder whether the course
was short -- later I jogged the last half-mile both directions with my Fitsense, which I just
calibrated yesterday, and it had the bit between the 6 marker and the finish as .17 mile. If the
rest of the course was accurate, that meant it was 250 feet short -- which would mean I still have a
pretty good PR. Heck, I'll take it. But next time I'll look for a certified course.
Afterward I chatted with some friends and co-workers and watched Cora pick up her winner's swag; the
awards were authentic Mercury dimes from the 1920s. Two of my co-workers have had a friendly rivalry
going back at least 30 races in several states. Today the one who until now always finished second
beat the other one for the first time. Speedwork pays off! It was a touching moment.
Post-race food was apples, bananas, corn chips, cookies, Powerade, soda and beer. Auto traffic
wasn't a problem because we were on the trail for most of the way, though we had to share the path
with non-racing bikers and pedestrians, not a real big deal. Points off for misplaced mile markers
and some potholes in the first mile.
Two and a half stars. Brian Bob says check it out.
--
Brian P. Baresch Fort Worth, Texas, USA Professional editing and proofreading
If you're going through hell, keep going. --Winston Churchill
