Post 14

by bynnad

Something I learned about today’s race.

An 8K race is totally different than a 5K. Distance-wise, obviously, but for other reasons as well. You have to adopt a new mindset and brace yourself for both physical and mental pains which you’ve never felt before. Instead of seeing it as one big race, think of it as a series of distances, and constantly tell yourself, “Okay, I made it through this mile, let’s see what happens in the next mile, I’ll try to pick off some more kids, I’ll follow that green jersey, etc.”

I was fortunate enough that today’s course at UMASS Dartmouth was relatively flat, and the weather was perfectly cool and cloudy. My time was 27:27. I was afraid in the beginning I wouldn’t even break 30, 0r 29. I guess I’ll keep working at it. Who knows, maybe I’ll break 27 by the end of the season. It’s only my first race. We’ll see what happens.