Lehi Roundup 10K Race Report

I mentioned in my post the other day, the frustrating information I received in regard to the 10K. I debated whether to even run the race or just do a long run without a 10K race in the middle. In the end, I opted to run the race. Here's how it went.

5:30 am: Up and having breakfast. The 10K doesn't start until 7:15 am, but I want to run to the course (3.5 miles) as part of my mileage for the day. This way I can run down, do the 10K, run home and depending on my legs do an alternate longer run home to get 15 miles for the day.

6:10 am: Out the door and on my way. The route down is a gradual downhill so I purposely take it easy.

6:40 am: Meet up with my sister, brother-in-law, nephew and my dad who are all running the 5K.

7:00 am: The 5K starts. I take a few minutes to visit with the owner of Smoothie King who is always one of the sponsors for the 5K that I put together for my kids school. I find out that they didn't know about the race until last Saturday.

Start 7:15 am: The race starts on time and we're off.

mile 1-2: I look at my pace and see that I am going about a minute/mile faster than what I should be. I tone it down a little. There are plenty of inclines in this course so I know I need to conserve my energy especially since I will be visiting it again on the second lap.

mile 3 right before the finish/turnaround: I've passed my sister and dad and saw my brother-in-law on a cross street. Starting so fast was a bad idea and i'm starting to pay for it. The inclines suck, but I'm on the downhill slope. As I close in on the turnaround, I see that the course is short of a 5K by .1 miles.

mile 4: I have to walk for a few steps after that last incline to catch my breath. 1 more incline and then it's downhill to the finish. The police presence that was there for the first lap is no longer around. I get to watch out for cars now.

mile 5-finish: Those hills took it out of me. I know I am in the top 20 and I'm pretty sure that I will place in my age group. I'm not going to PR, but it won't be a Personal Worst. I look at my Garmin just before entering the finish and it shows 47 minutes and change. The finish clock shows 48. I'm puzzled by this because I was right on the start when they said "Go".

Post-race: The timing group usually gives a printout as runners finish that shows the finish time, place, age group, etc. Nothing was handed out this time. I have no idea where I placed. I got one of the last of the sample smoothies, a water bottle and a piece of bread. I see a few other people from the neighborhood and find out that they too were frustrated by the race organization. We wait around to find out when they are doing awards. I finally ask the volunteers and they tell us that they are only doing 1-3 of the top finishers in Youth, Adult and Senior categories and these were awarded as people finish. No age division awards. Also, there were no raffles for prizes like they have done in the past.

Results: I finished in 48:11 according to the race clock. This puts me in 12th overall for the men, 1st for my age group. No Age group awards this year! I feel that giving feedback on a race is important whether the race is good or bad. I sent off an e-mail to the race organizer giving my thoughts on the race. Next year, I will hold off on registering until I see more information regarding the race.

Next race: Freedom Festival 10K. This is a much bigger race. I don't know how many are registered for the 10k. It may be a crowded course.