Sunday, April 27, 2014

2014 Ravenswood Run 5k Race Recap

The Ravenswood Run 5k took place this morning in my breathtakingly quaint neighborhood on the north side of Chicago. Mayor Rahm Emanuel was also on hand to cheer people on as the course winds its way near his house as well. Anyway, when I last posted, I had made a highly technical prediction that I would finish around 19 minutes. I had planned to break the race down into the following splits:

 6:20, 6:10, 6:00, 5:50

However, as the start time got closer and closer, the weather forecast - especially the wind (>25 mph gusts), was casting some doubts that I would be able to run that fast.

Pre-Race:
I woke up at 6 am for a two and a half mile shakeout run. I actually ran from my house to Lawrence and ran the last mile or so of the Ravenswood Run course. As I ran east on Lawrence - straight into the headwind coming unabated straight off of the lake - I knew that my hopes of a super fast kick were not realistic. I would just have to settle for a fast kick.

When I returned home, I had a cup of coffee, a bagel with peanut butter and a banana. My dad was ready to go, so at about 7:40 we ran over to the starting area. As I neared the starting line, I told myself that a decent plan B would be 6:30, 6:20, 6:10, 6:00 considering the conditions.

I had just enough time to do a couple of pickups as the announcer was calling the runners to the start corral. I positioned myself in the second row. The national anthem happened and then we were off!
Me (in orange) at the 2011 Ravenswood Run
The Race:
Mile 1: I started too far up in the corral and was immediately passed by about 50 runners. On the positive side I was way on the left hand side so I don't think I slowed anyone down. I glanced at my Garmin and saw I was running 6:00/pace, and knew that I had to slow down as the wind would be a factor for the last mile. So I dropped back a bit. Suddenly I saw Lynton and his dog who cheered me on. They were allegedly standing near Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel, but unfortunately, I did not see Mr. Mayor. 6:22/mile.

Mile 2: This mile was nice, because the wind was to our backs pretty much the entire time. I fought the urge to push the pace a little faster as I kept reminding myself that the final mile would be a killer as the big tailwind would turn into a mighty headwind.  6:12/mile.

Mile 3: This is the "showcase" mile of the race, because the course winds through the ultra-quaint Lincoln Square shopping area right in front of the Chicago Brauhaus and Gene's Sausage Shop. It is in this area that I spectated last year (see pictures here). Anyway, the tailwind was about to end as we made our way east onto Lawrence Ave. I muttered "here we go" and got a chuckle or two from nearby runners as no one was looking forward to this windy stretch. All I can say is that it is lucky I saved up a little juice for the final 3/4 mile as it was entirely into the wind. We got a little relief as we headed south onto Damen, but once we hit the homestretch on Wilson it was all headwind. 6:08/mile.

Tera Moody at the 2013 race in front of the
 Chicago Brauhaus
Mile 3.15: I spotted two gentlemen ahead of me, and by the looks of their hair (or lack thereof) I decided that they were likely in my age group. So I snuck up behind them and in the final 200 yards "slammed down the hammer" and whizzed by them. In fact it turned out that they were in my AG!  5:16/mile.

Stats:
Official Finish Time: 19:29
Official Pace: 6:17/mile
Garmin Pace: 6:11/mile

Place Overall: 74th out of 3,334
Place Age Group: 4th out of 142

Analysis:
I missed my prediction by 19 seconds and missed placing in my age group by four seconds - oh well, it happens. Anyway, it turns out that saving up enough energy for the last windy mile paid off as it was my fastest mile.  However by not cutting the tangents properly - I ran 3.15 miles - thereby adding at least 15 seconds to my time. The old Ravenswood Run course had just 7 turns and this new course has 11. So, next time, I'll have to be more conscious of the turns. Also, props to my dad who finished 3rd in his age group!

I have a half marathon in 6 days, so to determine my half pace, I plugged a 19:29 5k into the McMillan Calculator. This yields just about a 1:30 half marathon time. So if I run a smart race next weekend, I am hoping to get a second or two under that number!

Post Race:
I grabbed some water and headed over to watch for other bloggers/friends to finish, I waved to Erica who was in the finishing chute. I then spotted Eric, who was running the last 100 yards and I yelled for him to kick it! Then I walked back over the course and bumped into Lynton again. We chatted for a minute or so, then I made my way back further. I spotted my dad and ran with him for a couple of minutes. Then I turned around and went further back and found fellow WRCE members Mo, Anne and Jennifer. I ran and chatted with them for a few minutes. I spotted a co-worker of mine a little further up in the pack and went over to say hi to him.

Wurst Runners (WRCE) post-race. (src: Anne).
I found my dad at the finish and we chatted with fellow WRCE members for a few more minutes. Then we left and ran a mile over to Julius Meinl for some post-race Austrian breakfast.

Austrian coffee at Julius Meinl
Next Up:
The Indy Mini Marathon in six days!

24 comments:

  1. Still a speedy race! Good job!!! I wish I could have been there, but we had a wedding last night up in the burbs and let's just say Robert would have not been very cooperative if I tried to make him head back to the city so early. We barely got out of our room in time for the 12 noon checkout.

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    1. Thanks. Noon checkout? Sounds like you guys attended a very fun reception! :)

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  2. The fact that you can bump into so many people you know is one of the coolest things about this run (and, I guess, any run in Chicago if you know enough runners). I spotted a few people I know from my gym classes, and obviously kept bumping into the WRCE :)

    Nice job on that last 1.15 mile stretch! The wind was indeed crazy. I thought it was worst on Lawrence, the stretch on Wilson seemed a little easier since it was so close to the finish. And I'm glad you could run with us for a little bit too! Hope you and your dad enjoyed your Austrian brunch (did they have the brat quiche??)

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    1. Yes, the race is cool that way. Everywhere I looked there were neighbors/friends/co-workers. Yes, I think the Wilson stretch seemed easier than Lawrence. On the other hand, by Wilson, I was completely focused on passing those two guys so I was in a "zone" where I was not thinking about how difficult the wind was. :)

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    2. I agree - so many friends in the race and cheering - loved it! The wind - not so much! Lesson learned. I have to learn to be tougher from Pete! One of my TTAU teammates paced with me and did not let me fall off too far. That was awesome!

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    3. Since you live by the LFT, you maybe only run into the wind all winter, then take a bus or a cab home. That will get you "tougher" for next year's RR! :) Cool that you had a great pacer.

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  3. Aweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesome work!!!! Wow man. That's great. Excited to hear how Indy goes in a week!

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    1. Thanks! I am totally stoked for Indy. My first long race in almost 6 months!

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  4. You were pretty much dead on in your calculations. Way to assess the wind, which was crazy. Nice hammering at the end too.

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    1. Actually you're right, I did come close to my calculations. I just needed to factor in extra time for all of the turns and I might have been exactly right. Thanks!

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  5. I can't believe how fast you ran that last mile! That was a great run given that wind! I thought there were more turns this year, too! Great job and good luck in Indy!! I am skipping that one this year.

    I came in 5th in my age group also missed third by less than 10 seconds. 2 old chicks right ahead of me! I didn't notice! I would have won 35-39 with my time! I was way too close to you in the first mile - LOL!

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    1. Thanks! It is amazing how a little friendly competition can get me to run a little faster at the end of a race. It's funny that you would have won the 35-39 AG with your time. Too bad we can't build a time machine. However, I just checked and I would have been 14th in my AG if I had been a year younger! Weren't we running together during the first mile of the Oktoberfest 5k too? :)

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    2. Yes - some people never learn (me that is!) My pacer went out too fast yesterday but we did well :) - yeah the 25 and 30 AGs were super competitive. Not sure what was up with 35!

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    3. I have gone out too fast way more than I care to admit. I have only recently focused on being more conscious of slowing down early in races. Maybe the 35 year olds were hung over or running with their young kids or both!? Ha, ha. :)

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  6. Nice job - crazy fast! I missed the Mayor as well but my friend said he saw him and got a high five as her an past.

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    1. Thanks. Too bad I missed you (and the mayor). Cool that your friend got a high-five. I will be looking for him next year!

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  7. You were pretty close to your goal! No doubt had it not been for the wind you would have nailed it!

    Thanks for coming back to run with us for a bit!

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    1. Yes, if there was less wind and I ran the tangents a little better I might have saved a few seconds and been closer to my goal. I wonder what distance other runners' Garmins showed for the course distance. It was fun running with you guys!

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  8. Awesome race! You planned well and did so great in the wind! That was smart to check out the course beforehand! Congrats on your AG placement and your dad's too. :-) Good luck at your HM! I am happy to hear you are racing!

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    1. Thanks, thanks and thanks! I am super happy to be racing. I need to relax and enjoy my new injury-free status. I'm trying to focus on small incremental gains in fitness so I can stay that way! :)

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  9. HUGE congratulations, Pete! And how awesome that Rahm was right there cheering everyone on! I've heard consistently great things about the Ravenswood 5K and it's very much on the list of races that I want to do in the future. Neighborhood races are the best. I am so excited to hear how things go for you in Indy, too!!!

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    1. Yes, you should try it sometime. By the way, there were a couple of runners from the Illinois Half/Full on hand (Anne's hub and Lynton). Thanks, I too am excited to find out how I do running 13.1 miles on Saturday! :)

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  10. So speedy, Pete! I love the Ravenswood 5k and I'm sad I missed it this year. You have some kick in those legs, great job finishing so strong.

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    1. Thanks. Yes, I love the race as well. I enjoy a good end-of-race kick, but now I am kicking myself for perhaps kicking too late and missing out on 3rd place! Oh well, I'm just happy to be back! :)

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