Race #192 - On the Run 5k - Cramerton, NC - 10/13/12

After a month of wandering around aimlessly from week to week and sleeping in on Saturday mornings (that part was actually kinda nice), today I ran my first race in a month and, surprisingly, I seem to still be intact. I had initially planned to also take this week off, then run a 5k next week and see how it went, but all week I felt pretty good and was able to step up my speed some so I decided to try out my hammy a week earlier.

I don't know much about hamstring injuries other than people say they seem to hang on forever. I'm starting to get the idea about that. It first began with a kind of audible "pop" in my leg as I was doing speed work about three months ago, and since then it has flared up two more times -- once in a race and again at a speed work session. During all three of those flare-ups it's been hard to run afterwards for a few days but then I seem to be okay other than just enough dull pain to know it's still there. I've managed to keep my running streak alive (today is day #492) but have had quite a few 1-mile days. The constant reminder that I might re-strain it at any moment keeps me running just a little more conservatively than I might have run in the past.

Today I felt pretty good but knew I'd need to warm up good then start the race as smoothly as I could and keep the pace smooth throughout so I wouldn't jerk that hammy around too much. My goal was to just run reasonably well and finish with no damage. Everything worked out well other than taking a coughing fit in the first mile. I've had a cold for the past couple weeks although I figured that was a good time for it since I hadn't been racing, but the uncontrollable coughing slowed me down a little at first. After a mile or so into the race the coughing was under control and I felt pretty good. A couple of my running cohorts from the Gaston County Runners (Michael and Bernhard) were up ahead and were running well. Bernhard left us both behind. Michael was only about 10 seconds ahead of me but he's been running great and I didn't feel like I could catch him anyway so I was satisfied just hanging on behind. As I approached the finish I was happy to see the clock still under 22 minutes and I managed to finish at 21:54, which was great for me since it was about the same time as my last 5k a little over a month ago.

This was a small race with maybe 60-70 runners and I'm not positive the results will be online, although I hope they are and if I find them I'll be sure to add a link here.


Click Here for Race Results (will add a link later if found)

My Stats:

Time:  21:54
Pace:  7:03
Age Group:  1 of  ?
Overall:  8th (I think)
Average Heart Rate:  167
Maximum Heart Race:  179
Age Graded Equivalent Time:  17:37  (73.24%)

**************************************
* RACE RATING  (100 Possible Points) *
**************************************

Note: With my new rating system (started in December 2011) there's not a chance of any race scoring near 100. If it's important to you, look at each individual category to see how points were earned (or not). Just trying to be more objective with the details. I generally like all of the races I run. If there's something that really rubs me the wrong way I'll mention it in the summary above.

RACE COURSE  (20 possible points)
0 - Chip Timing: (3 points if yes)
0 - Starting Mat: (2 points if yes)
1 - Water Stops: (at least 1 for 5k, 2 for 10k, 4 for half marathon) (2 points)
0 - Course Marking:  (0)bad  (1)good
0 - Course Scenery:  (0)bad  (1)good
0 - Mile Markers: (0)poor or none  (1)normal  (2)with clocks or time called out
2 - Volunteers:  (0)too few  (2)good
0 - Finish line: (0)mediocre  (2)pretty good to excellent
2 - Certified Course: (0)no  (2) yes
2 - Correct Distance: (0)no  (2)yes
1 - Partly or fully on unpaved roads:  (0)yes  (1)no

REGISTRATION  (6 possible points)
1 - Cost:  (0)expensive  (1)reasonable  (3)cheap!
3 - Race Day Registration:  (0)no  (3)yes

RESULTS  (3 possible points)
0 - Posted promptly online:  (0)no  (2)yes
0 - Clear link on website:  (0)no  (1)yes

AGE GROUPS  (13 possible points)
0 - 3 deep awards: (2)yes (0 for anything less)
0 - 5-year age groups (5 points) (0 for anything less)
1 - 14 and under group (1)
0 - 65+ group (1)
0 - 70+ group (1)
0 - Top Overall M/F:  (0)none or first only  (1)top 3 or better
0 - Masters Category(40+): (0)no  (1)yes
0 - Grand Masters Category (50+):  (0)no  (1)yes

AWARDS  (9 possible points)
1 - Overall Winner Awards: (0)none  (1)yes  (2)excellent
1 - Age Group Awards: (0)none  (1)yes  (2)excellent
0 - Door Prizes or Drawing: (0)no  (2)yes
0 - Finisher Medals for All Finishers: (0)no  (1)yes  (3)really cool medals

POST RACE  (7 possible points)
2 - Food for Race Participants: (0)none  (1)some  (2)adequate  (5)a feast!
0 - Entertainment:  (0)no  (1)yes
0 - Finisher times posted after race:  (0)no  (1)yes

REST ROOMS  (4 possible points)
2 - Porta Potties:  (0)no  (1)limited, long lines  (2)plentiful
2 - Indoor Restrooms: (0)no  (1)limited, long lines  (2)plentiful

T-SHIRTS  (8 possible points)
2 - T-Shirts: (0)no  (2)yes
2 - Design: (0)not good  (1)not bad  (2)nice
0 - Material: (0)cotton  (2)technical fabric
0 - Discount for no-shirt option:  (0)no (2)yes

PHOTOGRAPHY  (12 possible points)
0 - Professional Photography: (0)no  (5)yes
x - Prices: (0)expensive  (2)reasonable  (5)cheap!
0 - Free Photographs (newspaper, etc.):  (0)no  (2)yes

PARKING  (8 possible points)
2 - Close to Start:  (2)yes  (0)no
2 - Close to Finish:  (2)yes  (0)no
2 - Plenty of spaces:  (2)yes  (0)no
2 - Free Parking:  (2)yes  (0)no

WEBSITE  (5 possible points)
0 - Dedicated race website (0)no  (2)yes
0 - No dedicated site but separate page on other site (organization, running store, etc):  (0)no  (1)yes
0 - Results or link to results posted on website:  (0)no  (2)yes

OTHER  (5 possible points)
0 - Shelter from Inclement Weather (needed or not): (0)no  (2)yes
0 - Swag (free socks, water bottles, etc.): (0)no  (1)yes, some  (2)excellent
0 - Part of race series or Grand Prix:  (0)no  (1)yes


TOTAL:  33

Comments

  1. Colin HayesOctober 13, 2012 at 4:37 PM

    Great to see you back racing! Great time, especially given the setback with the hammy. Here's hoping the injury is behind you. Still, take it easy for awhile. I know you will ;-) Good luck next weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Richard HefnerOctober 13, 2012 at 6:14 PM

    Thanks Colin... I know you've had more than your share of injuries. I'm hoping this one's behind me too. Not sure that it is since I can still feel it, but hopefully I can manage it by not going out too fast for a while.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Colin HayesOctober 13, 2012 at 6:43 PM

    Yes, those hamstrings need to be babied along. Gradually working into a fast pace is a smart approach. I'm sure you warmed up before the race, too.
    Speaking of running streaks, I have a tiny one (29 days) going. I started it with the hopes that I could slowly build my base back since I can't do really long runs yet. Still doing 3 "real" runs per week, with the "connector" runs being only a mile or two. Seems to be working. No real complaints from my injuries, and my fitness is gradually improving. Not sure if I'll ever reach the level of your streak, but I'll stay with it until my body tells me otherwise.

    ReplyDelete

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