All in the Family

Catching up on blog posts.  This was posted to my Facebook account in June 2013:

Howdy sports fans. Last Monday was Memorial Day. What better way to spend it than run a 4 miler? The MCRRC Memorial 4 miler.

Now as some of you may recall, this was one of the first races I ran when I began marathon training back in 2003. This was the third time I've run this race. It would also be my first "speed" run since last summer before getting injured (I've been focusing on rebuilding distance).

Even better, the whole family (well, almost the whole family) was running as well! My oldest was running the 4 miler with me, and the two younger kids were running the mile. Jordana would be watching the gear (and the younger kids when they finished).

It was fun showing the kids our running friends (Jordana knew probably half of the people there!). As I walked to the start line with my oldest, she asked "are those your fast running friends?" "yes" I said as I introducted her. Then we headed to the start and I tried to give her a few last minute pointers.

All too soon, it was time to start. The starter shouted "GO" and we were off. As this was my first short distance race in A LONG TIME I wasn't quite sure what pace to go. I thought I'd try to stay just off the shoulder of my running mates. The first mile is a steep downhill down a residential street, then a sharp left into Rock Creek Park. As a result, we were running at a pretty quick clip. Unfortunately, the course narrows dramatically as it enters the park and I was not positioned to stay right off my friends' shoulders and I watched them gain ground as I was caught behind some slower runners. Once we reached the Rock Creek Trail proper I was able to pick up the pace again.

I cruised through the second and third miles pretty easily, although I could tell I was not used to running that fast for that long. Highlights incluced seeing my daughter as we passed each other twice on the various out-and-backs. She looked pretty strong with nice running form. Curious what she thought of her "old man" speeding along...

Remember that steep downhill at the start? Well, that means a steep uphill at the finish! Why do they do that? Anyhow, I was -- struggling is not the right word -- pushing to keep up my pace as I climbed towards the finish. The nice thing was that my pelvic area was not hurting. I finished in a respectable 26:02 for a 6:31 overall pace.

On the one hand, I was pretty happy with my time. It was my first foray back into speed since my injury AND my pelvic region was never sore during the race. On the other hand, I was a little disappointed with my time. Pre-injury, I could run a 6:30 pace for an entire half marathon, and could run a 10K at a 6:10-6:15 pace. So I was much slower than I know I can run. But, as a friend reminded me, I am on the come back and should not put too much stock into my first short distance race.

Meanwhile, I grabbed a quick cup of gatorade and headed back onto the course to pick up my oldest and run her in. I was a little worried at where she might be. This would be the longest she's raced (in middle school, cross country is 3K or 1.86 miles) and perhaps what she's run in recent weeks (she and Jordana usually run 2 or 3 miles two or so times a week). And it was hot. I am happy to note that I picked her up with only 1/2 mile to go. She was running pretty strong and in good form (she said her ankle was sore, but that is probably due to not have raced/run this distance). I helped her up the hill. And she finished strong with a 37:44. Not bad for little training.

Meanwhile, the younger two ran the 1 mile race (downhill 1/2 mile then back uphill 1/2 mile -- cruel for little kids). My son finished a close second. He learned a valuable lesson -- don't look over your shoulder near the finish to see where your competition is, it only breaks your stride!! They didn't time the mile, but Jordana thinks he may have run sub 8 minutes (maybe close to a 7:30) but we're not sure. Not bad for 11 years old. And the 8 year old run a sub-11 minute mile (we think). Good job Ashe family!!!

So, all in all, it was a good day. The kids ran well. My pelvic region did not hurt. Curious in which XMP pace group a 26:02 4 miler will put me.

Stay tuned sports fans...