2022 Reston 10 Miler

Prologue

Two years ago, I ran the 2020 Reston 10 Miler.  That race seems like a lifetime ago.

At the time, I had no idea what was in store for me – for the world. I didn’t even mention COVID-19 in that post! There would be no 2020 Boston Marathon – at least in how we were used to it. Instead, I would run the 2021 Boston Marathon some 19 months later.

I haven’t blogged much since that race, but I have been running. Once I’d recovered from the 2021 Boston Marathon in November, I created a training plan for the 2022 Rock ‘n’ Roll DC Marathon, scheduled for March. I ran the 2021 Alexandria Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving in 39:46 (7:58 pace). It was a good race for setting training paces for the next few months. In December, I gradually built consistency – long runs on Sundays, interval workouts at the track on Tuesdays, and threshold runs on Thursdays. By January, I was running 40 miles a week. In February, my training schedule became more challenging when the long runs hit 14 miles, and the threshold runs were over an hour.

The week of this race, I completed a 14-miler on Sunday in cold and windy conditions. I missed Tuesday’s interval workout as I adjusted to working full-time on-site. On Thursday, I run commuted my threshold run.  Friday and Saturday were both easy run days.

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

Goals

Achievable:  Sub-1:23:15 (8:19 pace). This result is the time that I get after plugging my time from the 2021 Alexandria Turkey Trot, 39:46, into the McMillan Running calculator.  But, my interval runs have been in this range, so it seems unlikely.

Likely:  Sub-1:25:00 (8:30 pace).  The Reston 10 Miler is a tough course, and I’ve been trying to set realistic expectations.  This time is about 10 seconds/mile faster than I’ve been running my threshold pace workouts.

I opted not to set a “stretch” goal and focus on having a good, consistent race.

My non-time-related goal was to smile and have a good finish.

Course

The race starts at South Lakes High School and is a series of loops through Reston, Virginia. The course isn’t completely closed – runners take up one lane of two-lane roads.  I would describe the elevation profile as rolling hills.

The first four miles are a semi-circle around Lake Audubon on Glade Drive, up Soapstone Drive to Sunrise Valley Drive.  It features some gradual climbs.  The next looped segment goes east on Sunrise Valley Drive and circles back to the school on South Lakes Drive ending in a mile-long climb to Mile 7.  The final section goes up Colt’s Neck Road and then steeply downhill on Sunrise Valley Drive before heading down Soapstone Drive, over Ridge Heights Drive, and finishing on the track at South Lakes High School.

Strategy

With the course profile in mind, my strategy was to run by feel and see what would happen.

Playlist

I compiled an hour and 25 minutes of music for the race.

Pre-race

After a good night’s sleep, I woke up at 5 am.  Out of the racing habit, I hadn’t laid out my clothes.  I had coffee and toast for breakfast before finding a suitable outfit – some newly purchased apparel from Rabbit.

I left the house at 6:30 am and made it to South Lakes High School about a half-hour later.  Instantly, memories from two years before came back to me. It was a rare instance when my boyfriend and I ran together. I fondly remember it.

I planned plenty of time to pick up my bib.  I planned on doing race-day registration but had to use a website.  Unfortunately, I had trouble resetting my password, so I used an alternate email address.  The premium was a nice water-resistant hooded pullover.

I used the porta-potties outside and then went to the race start.  After a few announcements, we were off!

Weather

As I got dressed, I asked Alexa what the temperature was, and she replied 62 degrees!  Overall, it was slightly warmer than ideal and windy.

D.C.-area forecast: Record warmth possible today and tomorrow, with some wind and showers https://t.co/Ej9tL3j17h

— Capital Weather Gang (@capitalweather) March 6, 2022

The Race

Miles 0 to 4

(South Lakes High School, South Lakes Drive, Twin Branches Road, Glade Drive, and Soapstone Drive)

The pack ran past the school entrance and downhill to South Lakes Drive.  There weren’t many runners around me, so I didn’t feel the need to be overly cautious.  Still, I tucked behind runners when I could to avoid the wind.

Soon, the course turned right onto Twin Branches Road.  I found myself just in front of a group of runners who were talking and surged to get in front of them so I could enjoy the peaceful views of Lake Audubon.

I had forgotten my Garmin at work after my run commute on Thursday and had borrowed my boyfriend’s.  He had it set to auto-lap, so it went off earlier than the course mile marker.

Next, the course turned right onto Glade Drive.  The road was slightly uphill, so I slowed down a bit.  The course turned right onto Soapstone Road at the next major intersection and went downhill. From then on, I adopted a strategy of slowing down significantly on the uphills and then going all-out on the downhills.

Miles 4 to 7

(Sunrise Valley Drive, South Lakes Drive)

Just past the Mile 4 marker, the course turned right onto Sunrise Valley Drive.  I slowed down for the climb but then opened up my stride once the road went downhill.  I started steadily but surely re-passing some of the runners who over-took me.

After a mile, the course turned right back onto South Lakes Drive.  Heading back towards the start, I tried maintaining an even pace.

I passed the water stop and Mile 6, next to the high school.  It was so windy outside that the trash box for water cups blew over right in front of me!  I was able to dodge it, though.

At the top of the next hill, I passed the Mile 7 marker.  The split was a little slow but expected.

Miles 7 to 10

(Colt’s Neck Road, Sunrise Valley Drive, Soapstone Drive, Ridge Heights Road, South Lakes High School)

The course turned right onto Colt’s Neck Road for a short stretch before going right again onto Sunrise Valley Drive.  I struggled a bit during this section.  One runner passed me and remarked on my strategy. causing me to second-guess it.  A little while later, a friend’s son passed me and said, “Hi.”  I hadn’t seen him in a while and didn’t recognize him!

During the 8th mile, there was another steep downhill and I managed to take it fast.  I re-passed many of the runners who had passed me during my bad patch.

After a half-mile, the course went back uphill, and we took another right onto Soapstone Drive.  Finding my second wind, I passed the two women who had been ahead of me for the last few miles.

Runners crossed the road with less than a mile left and turned left onto Ridge Heights Road.  I looked behind me to see if anyone would catch me, but the runners I had just passed on Soapstone Drive were well behind me.

Turning into South Lakes High School, I passed a few other runners as we snaked through the parking lot to the track.  Once I felt the soft surface under my feet, I felt relief.  I was going to finish the race with a good time.  I thought of my recent track workouts for the final quarter-mile, which helped me sprint to the finish.

Post-race

After the race, I crossed the finish line and walked around the in-field.  When I caught my breath, I looked for my friend and her son but didn’t see them.  I grabbed some water and Gatorade and then headed home.

Later, my boyfriend and I went to our favorite neighborhood restaurant for brunch to celebrate.  I expected to feel tired and want a nap, but I didn’t.  I took that as a sign that I was in good racing shape again.

Result

Time=1:24:38

Pace=8:28

Log Details Unavailable

I was the 111th finisher out of 398 (top 28%), 34th woman out of 197 (top 18%), and 2nd in my age group out of 18 (top 12%).  The field was double the size last year, but I think this was a more competitive field.

Keira D’Amato finished second overall but was the first woman in 57:02.  The winner was Zachary Pistilli who finished in 54:45 and appears to be the current record holder for the fastest known time up the Mount Vernon Trail!

Personal records

Master:

• 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 Miler: 1:21:32 (8:10 pace) at the 2020 Reston 10 Miler.

Grandmaster:

• 10 Mile PR: 1:24:38 (8:28 pace) at the 2022 Reston 10 Miler.

Epilogue

The Reston 10 Miler is a great tune-up race because it’s a challenging course – it doesn’t fool you into thinking you’re fitter than you are.  The only downside is that it comes a little early in the racing calendar for a true test.

This week, I’ll rest a little but then try to get my mileage back up.

Next race: 2022 Rock ‘n’ Roll DC Half Marathon on Saturday, March 26th.

(My Complete Racing Schedule.)

Abridged Version

During the first two miles, I ran easy out of respect for the hills.  By the second mile, I adopted a strategy of taking the downhills hard and the uphills easy.  By Mile 9, I passed all the women I had been going back and forth with during the earlier miles.  I borrowed my boyfriend’s Garmin, which was set to auto-lap, so I could take splits.

My time was 1:24:38 (8:28 pace) – about where I thought I would be. When I plugged my time into the McMillan Running Calculator, I get a marathon time of 3:57:34 (9:04 pace).  I’ll need to get a bit faster if I hope to re-qualify for the 2023 Boston Marathon with a sub-3:55:00 (8:59 pace) in September.