Watchung Muncipal Alliance Run 2013

As a warm-weather racer, The Watchung Municipal Alliance Run is usually my last scheduled race in the Fall. This year, the race was held on a rather warm but damp Sunday in early October. Our club is a sponsor of the event, and we had close to a dozen runners ( a sizable contingent in the field of about 50.) Besides the chronic tendonitis in my right achoilles, I'm just recovering from a pulled muscle in my lower stomach, which curtailed the intensity of my training over the past couple months. While I never stopped running (are you serious?!), I went to alternate days for a couple of weeks, and generally was careful about pushing it out too hard. Over the last few weeks, miraculously, it's coming around, a "3" on the pain scale, versus a worst of "7 1/2," or so. I popped a couple of Aleve that morning for good measure, but no excuses! My warm-up mile was comfortable, and I was ready to give a decent effort. The starting horn was a little abrupt, and caught me napping a bit. I mentally recovered about 30 seconds in, and felt I ran at maximum effort (given the above circumstances)from that point on. As usual, I caught the early rabbits by about a half-mile in, and was able to keep my "no one passes you!" credo. Unfortaunately, the runner in front of me showed no signs of slowing, so all the motivation had to come from within - no one was around me, front, side, or back! The first mile (mostly uphill) was a surprisingly slow 6:48. I knew the downhill on Sunlit Drive was advantageous for me, and I flailed away as hard as I could. The second mile was slightly faster, as I hit the mark in 13:20, but I was still hoping these splits were somehow incorrect. By this point, with the fog and distance, the runner in front of me was almost out of view. I still pushed as hard as I could around Watchung Lake (probably slowing up the hill on Stirling Road), and even turned it up one more notch in the final 1/4 mile around the north end of the Lake. It was with disappointment I saw the final time of 21:06, good for sixth overall and second in my 50-59 age-group. Checking my records, my time was "only" 15 seconds slower than last year, but a good minute behind my best efforts earlier this summer. What is most disconcerting is that I felt I ran close to all-out the whole way, with no strategy other than to keep pushing as hard as I can. Was it the groin, the achilles, too much distance, too little speed, too many years on the calendar, or all of the above? Maybe one more race this Fall will answer those questions.