Tremendous race. Tons of fun. FREE burritos for a year.

So glad I practiced the burrito eating the other afternoon — it really helped with understanding how I’d feel after munching down a Moe’s Joey Jr.

The race was a mixed Open 5K/Moe’s Challenge, so we all started together at 6:30pm. The eventual open 5K winner set off at a crazy pace, but I concentrated on finding a good rhythm and settled into second place behind local crazy guy Tommy Neeson, who incidentally, was my choice to win the burrito challenge.

First mile was a comfortable 5:37, and by this time I’d taken the lead and had a very slight advantage as we headed towards the Moe’s Burrito Zone. This was where I expected Tommy to wolf down the burrito and get a decent head start on me for the final 1.5 miles, but somehow I managed to stuff the last bite into my mouth and take off like a mad fool.

The next half mile was a tad uncomfortable as I tried to run fast, breathe and swallow the remnants of the last bite, all the time wondering how close Tommy was and how long I could keep the pace going.

By the end of mile two my legs were back to normal and it was just a question of keeping things ticking over, and more importantly keeping the burrito down. I must admit I uncharacteristically glanced back several times to see where the competition was, but with half a mile to go I knew I was pretty safe.

I know I was smiling as I approached the finish line, and hopefully managed to spit out the stray black beans before the camera guy took the finish photo.

Official time — 18:59
Official finish place — 1st overall with a prize of free Moe’s burritos for a year!

Official time — 16:50
Official place — 3rd overall

Can’t believe I slashed 19 seconds from my previous best time set at the end of 2008. Life is good!

Anyway, on to the race recap. I decided to just jog an easy mile as a warm up today. Last week at the LEE’S Friends Run on the Wild Side 5k I ran a two mile hot and humid warm up which probably did more harm than good. Lining up at the start today, I felt much more refreshed and ready to race.

The race started promptly at 8:30am and I soon settled into a good rhythm just behind the lead pack. The trickiest part of the first quarter mile turned out to be avoiding the race cameraman who somehow managed to fall off the back of the pick-up truck he was riding in. Oops. Luckily he was okay.

I took the lead just after the first right turn, but wasn’t able to shake off eventual female winner Octavia Rinehardt and good friend Jon Leiding until we’d passed the one mile mark. I glanced at my Garmin and was pleased how comfortable the 5:42 felt.

Mile two was all about maintaining focus and keeping the stride ticking over. Thankfully I was able to follow the excellent bike lead (Michael Kottmer) through the many folks out exercising on the paved trail around the Mount Trashmore lake. Thanks Mike for clearing the way.

The first loop was soon over and it was nice to receive some encouragement from the finish line folks and numerous spectators/volunteers. I pressed on and reminded myself I was half way done. Mile two was a big surprise in that it was quicker than the first mile — 5:38 to be precise. I still felt fairly strong but was concerned Jon or Octavia could still come from behind and steal the win.

Thankfully I was able to maintain a good cadence and rounded the final bend far enough in front to hold on for the win. My finish time was a big surprise. After last week’s 18:12, my main goal was to break 18 minutes today. Imagine my surprise as the clock still displayed 17:20-something as I crossed the line!

The race win was definitely nice, but the official time of 17:21 very encouraging — just 12 seconds off my lifetime PR and my third fastest 5k time ever. Good times!

Thanks to everyone involved for putting on a great event. Hopefully this one will be around for many years to come…

Here’s the video of me finishing last Saturday’s LEE’S Friends Run on the Wild Side 5K. Pretty cool, huh?

LEE’S Friends Run on the Wild Side 5K from steve speirs on Vimeo.

The race got underway promptly at 8 AM with the usual fast kids starting off swiftly. There was also one guy who set off especially fast –– for a brief couple of seconds, I thought maybe I had entered a 1 mile race by mistake! Anyway, I soon settled into a rhythm, and hit the 1 mile mark in five minutes 44 seconds, with Renee High tracking me in second place and Jon ‘Flex’ Leiding not far behind in third.

However, I went from feeling fairly comfortable at the mile, to very heavy legged at the turnaround point. From ticking along nicely, it was almost like I was treading water. I managed to hold pace fairly well and stay under six minute mile pace [5:57], but it was definitely a struggle.

Leading the race was cool, but the threat of being overtaken was always in the back of my mind. The oppressive heat and thick humidity really got to me in the final mile and I remember gasping for air and trying hard to maintain form as best as possible. Somehow I logged another sub minute mile [5:59], but it was ugly! Only when I reached the 3 mile mark did I dare glance back to check how close Renee was. It turned out she was about 10 seconds behind and just far enough out of reach. I also saw Jon about 1/10 of a mile behind and racing strongly.

I crossed the line with a grimace on my face, but a huge sense of relief that I had held on for a rare 5K race victory. The time wasn’t great [18:12], but a win is a win, and I will take it!

Hopefully next week I can get back to a sub-18 minute 5K when I race again at the OK5K at Mount Trashmore.

Online registration is available at Active.com, or you can download a race entry form and mail it in the old-fashioned way.

Oh yes, be sure to stick around after the race for the post-race breakfast and great raffle prizes. The breakfast will be provided by Machismo Burrito Bar and is definitely not to be missed! Hope to see you there….

So, onto the Capernaum 5k. The course was a typical boardwalk affair with the race starting at 31st Street and heading south all the way to the 8th Street turnaround cones. From this 180° turn it was a straight shot all the way back to the 31st Street starting area and the ever popular Neptune Statue.

My loose goal going into the race was to attempt a sub-18 finish, although realistically I expected something a bit slower. At the start of the race there was the usual smattering of younger runners all looking for their moment of glory, so I just hung back out of the way and waited for an opening to appear. The pace felt pretty easy in the first mile and I found myself coasting along in third place. Split = 5:49.

Mile two included the sharp 180° turn and this is where things started getting tough. As expected, my lack of speed and endurance kicked in, and the last mile and a half were quite an effort. However, I did manage to record another 5:49 split for mile two, and even got a bit faster in the final mile with a 5:47. Third place was comfortably mine, but I ended up about 10 seconds away from the second place guy Tommy Neeson. The winner was a 15 year kid who ran a 17:17. Oh to be young again!

One good thing about a race on the boardwalk — the many hotels available for a great post-race breakfast! Ally and I treated ourselves to a slap up meal at the Hilton and just enjoyed watching the world go by from our outside table. Great to be back at the races! Next up — the Elizabeth River Run 10k next weekend.

I arrived in plenty of time, registered, chatted with friends for a while before heading off on a two mile warm up. I timed the warm up to end a few minutes before the event start time, but must have incorrectly read the flyer and ended up having to wait an extra 15 minutes for the race to start. Oh well, judging by the quality field that had assembled on the start line, I wasn’t in with a chance of winning anything anyway!

The 5k course is quite a fast one — Virginia Beach flat with not too many turns and for the most part a good view of the runners ahead of you. The first mile marker was a little off (according to my Garmin anyway) and I think I was in about 12th place with a 5:48 mile split. The rest of the race was all about staying strong and maintaining good form.

I really don’t have any speed in my legs at the moment, so it was more a case of gutting out the distance and minimizing the fade as much as possible. The pic on the left is me in the last tenth of a mile, trying to stay ahead of the fast-finishing guy behind. I look better than I felt!

Despite the fade in the last two miles, I finished in 18:37 (a fraction under 6:00/mile pace) and picked up 3rd in the 40-49 age group. I think I was 9th overall, so not too bad a performance, but definitely plenty of work to do to regain my earlier season speed. Patience, patience, patience…

Sunday morning was long run morning. Thankfully the high humidity of Saturday had gone away and been replaced by cooler temps and a nice breeze. I wasn’t sure how far to run — Ally was planning a 20 miler in her build up to the Richmond Marathon; I figured I’d try for an even paced 15 or 16, with an outside chance of 18 if everything felt good.

I’m still on the fence about Richmond — I’m entered in the marathon but after being out six weeks with the stress fracture am not in any shape to race it. I could run it as a training run in the build up to the Seashore Nature Trail 50K, or I could switch down to the half marathon that takes place on the same morning as the marathon. At least I have some time to decide, so I guess I’ll wait a few more weeks to see how training progresses.

Anyway, back to the Sunday run. Before leaving the house I consumed by usual Sustained Energy liquid breakfast, topped off a spare water bottle to sip on the drive to the park and packed some Recoverite for after the run. I also picked up a Hammer Gel “just in case” I needed it on the run…

Before hitting First Landing State Park, I ran several miles on North Great Neck Road and by the time I’d reached the Visitor Center had logged ten miles. I stopped briefly to grab a drink and chatted briefly to JP and CB who were running some of the Seashore Nature Trail 50K course. Daughter Shannon was also at the Visitor Center – two miles in to her longest run for some time….

Feeling surprisingly good, I headed off down the main trail, thinking about Richmond, the 50K and some other stuff. Before I knew it I’d reached the 64th Street entrance, and with the sun in my eyes nearly bumped into Tim and Paul who were heading up the trail in the other direction. I decided it was a good time for a gel, chatted briefly to Ally who was 9 miles into her run and doing well. After a quick drink, I headed off towards the Narrows to continue the run but soon veered off the trail and thought it best to head back to the main Visitor Center and then back to the car which would give me a total of about 19 or 20 miles.

I think the gel must have kicked in at some point and my pace continued to quicken. My legs felt great and I started to think about extending the long run some more. The moment of truth came at the guard hut on the main entrance road where I could have turned left to run the two miles back to the car — instead I chose the right turn which would snake me back to the Visitor Center and the main Cape Henry Trail.

At this point I had the crazy idea of running 26.2 miles and plotted out a route in my mind that would give me the marathon distance. The last four or five miles went well. I half expected to hit a wall of some sort, but it never came; in fact, my 25th mile was the fastest of the day. I arrived back at the car in good shape, chugged down my Recoverite and stretched.

I’m still no closer to a decision about Richmond, but today was a great confidence booster and an interesting experiment. My foot felt (and still feels) great, and aside from a few aches and pains around the groin/hip area, it doesn’t feel like I just ran a marathon.

Splits from the run can be found at the Garmin Connect web site.

For the record: 26.2 miles — 3:14:40

Anyway, on to the race. It was great to chat with “good guys” Ryan, Jon, Ed, Chris and Billy before the gun went off (apologies for the people I missed here….). I think they were genuinely more excited for me to be racing again than I was myself! I was also trying to motivate wife Ally who had a great training run on Friday afternoon and was keen to run well. I predicted a sub-25 minute finish which would have been her fastest 5k for some six years. We wished each other good luck right before the off..

The first few steps felt very weird. Not sure if it was just my imagination or if I actually looked as ridiculous as I felt. The lead guys soon broke away and I found myself in about 15th place heading into the first right turn. The gravel surface wasn’t great so I took things easy on the bend before opening up a little on the straightaway. I passed several runners in the next half mile and at this point in the race found myself in a good rhythm, breathing comfortably and most importantly of all, foot feeling good.

Most of the remainder of the race is a bit of a blur. I know the first mile was a 5:48 and convinced myself the Garmin must have been wrong. From here on in I tried to focus on my stride turnover, breathing and relaxation. I know I tensed up a few times and needed to shake my arms out to release the stiffness. I didn’t notice a split at mile two (turned out it was a 5:54) and just tried to stay with good friend Billy Chorey in the last third of the race. Billy has also had foot problems recently, but you’d never guess by the way he powered through the field into seventh place. By the way, thanks Billy for helping to keep me on pace — appreciate it!

Not far from the finish we were “treated” to a nice run up the ramp towards the lawn seats and back down the other side. Not sure why it came as a surprise as I’d already seen the course map and knew we’d be running it at some stage. Anyway, we hit the three mile mark, took a sharp right turn and there was the finish line with the clock ticking up to 18 minutes. I won’t say I sprinted for the finish but I did try to quicken my pace. Billy was clear in front of me, but from behind, up raced fellow 40-44 age grouper Edward Ferguson. I don’t think you’ll see a stronger finish than Ed’s – most impressive and I definitely had no answer. First thing I did on crossing the line was congratulate Edward on a great victory (turned out to be an age-group victory too) and shout over to Billy to get some ice on his foot…..I could see he was hurting. My official finish time was 18:07, but I was more concerned in heading back to the three mile mark to wait for Ally and to cheer her on.

Just a few minutes later, here she comes, looking strong and ticking along nicely. After a few words of encouragement I followed her footsteps, rounded the last corner and was pleased to see the clock still displaying 24 minutes something as she crossed the line. As predicted Ally had broken 25 minutes and logged her fastest 5k for years. Well done!!

So, that’s it — a faster than expected return to racing and best of all, no real foot issues. Definitely feels good to be back and thanks everyone for the kind words and huge cheer when I went up to collect my 2nd place age group award. Really means a lot to have all your support….

Last Friday I closed with the following statement:

In the evening, assuming I can still put weight on my foot, I’ll be running the Crystal City Twilighter 5k in Arlington, VA, which looks to be a great event and is billed as “the area’s premier twilight event with a flat course, great runner premiums and perks, and a fabulous after party.” I signed up earlier in the week and so far there are over 2000 entrants (not including elites). Looks like a ton of fun – I just hope I’ll be able to enjoy it and race well.

Well, to summarize:

1. I was able to put weight on my foot.
2. The Crystal City Twilighter 5k was a great event and it was a lot of fun.
3. I did enjoy it but I didn’t race well. In fact, just past the two mile mark, as the runners headed towards the finish, I pulled up lame with what turned out to be a stress fracture of the 2nd metatarsal.

So, for my stupidity in trying to race three 5k’s in one day on an already tender left foot, I get to wear the super cool Foam Walker ™ by Aircast ® – a full-shell, semi-pneumatic support effective in fracture healing and managing edema. Healing time should be around the six week mark, but I’ll see what the foot specialist says at my follow-up appointment on August 22nd. I’m also hopeful I’ll be able to take advantage of a Smith & Nephew EXOGEN Ultrasound Bone Stimulator – an amazing bone healing device approved to accelerate healing of indicated fresh fractures. Apparently, the Stimulator is effective in just 20 minutes a day and has been proven to heal indicated fresh fractures 38% faster.

So, for the time being I’ll be focusing on some core and upper body workouts and expect to be proficient in the one-legged push-up VERY SOON! If nothing else it adds a new dimension to the Hundred Push-Ups challenge and it will be nice to be the first to claim “I Did The Hundred One-Legged Push-Ups!”

The foot is still quite swollen and tender to touch, but once the swelling goes down I’ll be incorporating some easy spinning on the bike trainer and possibly some swimming/pool running to help maintain my already diminishing cardiovascular fitness. Should be an interesting challenge and the start of another unplanned chapter in the Running Adventures of Steve Speirs. Good times!