Broad Street Run

5:30 wake up. Light breakfast, catch the el by 6:45. It's nice that I can ride for free today by flashing my bib. 45 min later I'm checking a bag and in 5 more I get in the restroom line. Relieved that it's early, and after a quick warmup I decide that today should be a good day. Stretch out for awhile and at the last minute my bladder cues me back to the restroom line which has grown into a mob. Make it out alive with 5 min to spare. Took a spot behind the 6 min/mile sign.

The weather seems to have worked out in our favor. No thunderstorms as they predicted all week. Temperature right around 55, overcast.

I think about a strategy. I'm not sure what to expect but I'd heard over and over how "fast" this race is. I decide 6:30 splits are a reasonable goal. That would put me across the finish in 65 flat. I'm thinking I'll shoot for 6:30s for the first 7, then if I have anything left (or, if I'm not limping along at 9:00 pace by then) just run a 5k like my life depends on it. Mentally this is a convenient approach, it's easy to digest. We'll see how it plays out physically.

It takes 20 seconds to cross the starting mat. It's really crowded and I see why race organizers have decided on corrals for next year. Mile 1, 6:46 including the 20 seconds. I'm feeling good, and I'm surging around various groups now trying to find a rhythm. Lots of pep in my legs to my surprise.

There are slight undulations up here on Broad St. but they're barely noticeable. Still, I try to take what I can from the downs. Traffic starts to slow every now and then and I'm wondering if we're really slowing or if the faster folks are just breaking away. Turns out to be the latter, mile 2 is 6:23.

Mile 3 is the last of the "hills," goes by in 6:25. I realize if I keep this up for another mile I'll have made up that 20 seconds from the start. Then if I can hold 6:30s, which I'm pretty confident I can do, I'll finish in 65 clock time, 64:40 chip time.

Traffic is slowing again and I assume that more runners are surging. I stick with a group and it turns out that it's the other way around. We're slowing down a little, mile 4 6:31. This is fine by me at this point. Lingering in the back of my mind though is that voice that wants me to push more. I decide to take the risk and push past the 5 mile mark in 32:28. I'm still feeling in control.

Now I enter unknown territory. A 5 mile tempo split in 32 flat was tough in training. What happens now? Have I gained fitness since then? Here's hoping I have. Mile 6 is another 6:23. I get all cheesy now as the crowd support seems to give me an emotional lift. I really appreciate these folks taking time out of their day, seriously. Mile 7 passes in 6:26. This race is going by fairly quickly. I've got my fingers crossed that this trend continues.

My legs are starting to notice that I've been running so damn hard for 45 min. My feet feel hot, and I notice some blisters beneath my big toes. I try not to dwell on it and focus on maintaining. My 5k surge seems like a big joke now. Mile 8, 6:27.

There is so little distance between me and the finish now that I don't care whether or not I collapse trying to run progressively harder. I try to play with my competitive drive by pulling up next to others. They try to pull away, I respond. This happens 4 or 5 times until I've picked up another group. Mile 9 is 6:23.

The last mile is spent praying that the finish line appears soon. I overheard two guys talking at the start about how the entrance to the naval yard can be deceptive because the finish is actually a 1/2-mile in. I remember this as I pass through the gates. Just two more laps around the track now. It's in this last mile that I see MM, a good friend Matt, and my parents. I'm glad they're here. A few guys start sprinting to the finish and I kick it as well for a fastest final mile, 6:19. 1:04:24 official clock time, 1:04:04 chip.

So, I'm pretty psyched. Went out with what I thought was a challenging goal of 65 minutes and nailed it with almost a minute to spare. I guess this is why folks rave about this race. Afterwards I chatted briefly with a bunch of locals (John, Steve, Seebo, Dierdre) who seemed pretty happy as well. Couldn't stick around for food with Philly Runners as I had my folks with me. I joked with them that I'm putting my running shoes in the closet until June. Might not turn out to be a joke, especially with my blister feet. Seriously, the entire ball of my foot is full of puss. Next time I make an entry it might be about a ridiculously long bike trip.