2018 Reston 10 Miler

Scroll all the way down to the end of the post for the tl;dr version.

Prologue

I was mid-way through training for the 2018 Boston Marathon before the race.  I wanted to run my first tune-up race a little earlier than my training plan laid out because I thought I needed the speed after training for the 2018 San Diego 50 Miler.  The week before the race, I ran close to 70 miles.  I ran hard Monday through Thursday and then took Friday and Saturday easy in preparation for the race.

Goals

Personal Records:

• 10 Mile PR: 1:08:26 (6:51 pace) at the 2014 Cherry Blossom 10 Miler.
• Course PR: 1:11:27 (7:09 pace) at the 2012 Reston 10 Miler.
• Most Recent 10 Mile: 1:22:20 (8:14 pace) at the 2017 Army 10 Miler.

Achievable: Sub-1:20 (8:00 pace).  I ran 18 miles with 10 miles at goal marathon pace a few weeks ago and averaged 8:08 pace during the faster segment.

Stretch: Sub-1:18 (7:48 pace).  I should be able to run a little faster than 8:00 pace.

Strategy:  Run by effort.  I haven’t raced in while and am not sure of my fitness.  Plus, the hills and wind weren’t going to make this easy.

Course

The race starts at South Lakes High School and is a series of loops through Reston, Virginia.  The elevation profile could be described as rolling hills.  The course isn’t completely closed – runners take up one lane of a two lane roads.  The first loop is around Lake Audubon on Glade Drive and has some pretty gradual climbs.  The second loop goes up to Sunrise Valley Drive and circles back to the school ending in a mile long climb at Mile 6.  The third loop goes out to Colt’s Neck Road and heads down Soapstone Drive with a generous downhill back to South Lakes High School, finishing on the track.

There is water at miles 3 and 6.  Crowd support is mostly volunteers, and the friends and family of runners.

Playlist

I arranged an hour and 20 minutes of music.

Pre-Race

I went to bed at around 9pm the night before and woke up just before 4am.  I hadn’t done any pre-race logistics.  I was so poorly prepared that I had to go online to see when the race started!  I drank a liter of water and coffee before leaving my house in Arlington at 6:15am.  From my time visiting a chiropractor in Reston last year, I knew it was only a 30 minute drive.

I got to the race site before 7am.  I remembered from the other time I ran this race that there was a better parking lot than the one by the start.  When I couldn’t figure out where it was, I just parked.  I thought registration would be inside of the school, but a fellow runner and I figured out that it was outside by the track.  I registered quickly and headed back towards my car.  A volunteer tracked me down and made me sign the waiver.  Back in the car, I sat in the car trying to figure out what I wanted to wear.  I also fiddled with my bib quite a bit trying to use Race Dots.

I left my car at around 7:40am and got in line for the porta potties.  I chose the slowest line – one of the booths designated for my line was actually locked.  I debated skipping this step but thought I might regret it.  I only had time for a short, one mile warm-up ,  I got to the start with only a couple of minutes to spare.  Without much fanfare, we were off!

Weather

The wind had been so bad two days before that the federal government closed!  It calmed down on Saturday, but was still strong on race day morning.  The air temperature was above freezing but with wind chill, it felt colder.

The Race

Early Miles – Miles 1 to 3.

We took off downhill in the school parking lot.  The course took a left onto South Lakes Drive and flattened out.  It was a little hard to navigate around the other runners but I found a nice line in the center of the road next to the safety cones and found a nice, comfortable pace.  I enjoyed the view of Lake Thoreau to my left and settled in.  I’ve run this race before and knew there was an uphill after the right turn onto Twin Branches Road, so I intentionally kept my effort easy.

My first mile was just under 8:00 pace.  I thought it was a bit slow but I reminded myself that my goal was to run conservatively.  I felt a sense of peace come over me as I took in the view of Lake Audubon on my right.  Sure, it was cold.  But, it was a beautiful morning.  And, I was doing something I enjoy!

The course went right onto Glade Road and climbed again.  I was happy to see my pace was still just under 8:00 at the second mile because it showed consistency.  After a half mile, the course went right again onto Soapstone Drive.  The course was heading north and I felt the full force of the wind.  I slowed down a little.  It was too early in the race to expend extra energy.  I also started to think that I might have over-dressed.  I was wearing a Nike thermal and my Saucony Ridge Runner Hoodie.

Splits (by course): 7:56, 7:55, 8:18.

Middle Miles – Miles 3 to 7.

I continued climbing up Soapstone Drive.  For the next mile, I fought the wind and the hills.  Just past Mile 4, the course finally turned right onto Sunrise Valley Drive.  At last, a downhill!  I loosened up my stride a little and surged past a few runners.  But another hill approached and I downshifted.  The runners I passed leap-frogged ahead of me.  I fought the urge to retake them.  I kept telling myself, “There’s a hill at Mile 6.”  I got my bearings and realized I was across the interstate from the chiropractor’s office I visited heading up to the 2017 New York City Marathon.

I had opened up a gap during the downhill and found myself running alone for a while.  It felt more like I was on a training run than in a race.

I passed the water stop and Mile 6 markers next to the school and got ready for the hill I knew was coming.  The climb seemed never-ending!  And, the wind was brutal.  I put my head down and just focused on putting out an even effort up the hill.  A few runners that I’d passed during the last mile came back for me, including a woman in green tights and a man in a red vest.

Splits (by course): 15:59, 7:37, 8:24.

Later Miles – Miles 7 to 10.

The course turned right onto Colt’s Neck Road.  There were two women run-walking.  I passed them and they passed me back several times during this section.  As I climbed the hill leading to Mile 8, a runner friend passed me and said, “Hi”.  I wished him a good race as he pulled away.

The course went downhill as we made a soft turn onto Sunrise Valley Drive.  Knowing there were just two miles to go, I let my legs fly!  I passed the woman in green tights and the run-walkers.  I stayed close behind my friend but didn’t think I should push harder to catch up with him.

The course went back uphill and we took another right onto Soapstone Drive.  I felt a sense of relief when I saw the marker for Mile 9.  One of the great things about finishing the 2018 San Diego 50 Miler is that I have a lot of confidence about covering distance.  I can run 10 miles.  It’s really just a matter of how fast.

The course went left onto Ridge Heights Road.  I quickened my pace to allow a gap to open up behind me so that some of the cars that had been stopped could go through.  I thought the burst of speed that might have been a mistake, but the course was downhill now and there wasn’t much running left.  My friend was only a few yards ahead of me.  I watched as the man in the red vest tried to over-take him.  After a half mile, we turned right into the school parking lot.  I felt completely exhausted and focused on watching the road so I wouldn’t trip.  I was so happy to see the track!  It didn’t feel as soft as Hayward Field but it still felt great under my feet.  With 200 meters to go, my friend got passed.  A few second later, I crossed the finish line!

Splits (by course): 8:19, 7:38, 7:13.

Post-Race

I walked and talked with my running friend immediately after the race.  I grabbed some snacks and a Gatorade.  When I got back to my car, I debated doing a cool-down and going to the award ceremony.  But, I decided to go home instead.  I was cold and just wanted a hot shower! After a few hours of rest, I ran a 6 mile recovery run for 17 miles on the day.

Result

My chip time was 1:19:19 (7:56 pace) [Log Details].  I was the 95th finisher (top 15%), 20th woman (top 6%), 1st in my age group (top 3%), and fourth female master (a woman in her fifties was 1st place female master!)

Epilogue

The race was well organized.  The volunteers and police officers did a good job marshaling the course.  If anything, they could have used a couple more porta potties, but it certainly wasn’t the longest I’ve waited to use one.

I ran well.  I probably could have run a little more aggressively at the start but I don’t regret it.  After the race, I consulted the VDOT Table in Daniels’ Running Formula.  I correlated this performance with a 73:56 (7:54 pace) 15K, which equates to a 3:40:43 (8:26 pace) marathon.

Next race: 2018 Shamrock Half Marathon on Sunday, March 18th. (My Complete Racing Schedule.)

Abridged Version

It was a cold and windy morning for the race.  I ran by effort on this course with rolling hills.  I averaged about 8:00 pace through the first eight miles.  With most of the climbing over, I opened my stride on the downhills and ran the last two miles at low 7:00 pace.  I finished in 1:19:19 (7:56 pace.  I was the 20^th woman overall and first in my age group!