So we turned onto Long Wharf. There was some wind, and it's a long stretch so you can see a lot of people. I worked on taking each pass slowly, and this was an area where there was plenty of opportunity to move up. I saw someone I know pretty well slip into a porta-potty- felt bad for him. You have to go bad when you stop during a 20K and it cost him.
Eric just kept up the pace. It was hard to tell which one of us was exactly setting the pace and I don't think either of us was entirely. We were both just running. I tried to give him a little extra room in the turns because when your quad is hurting, changing direction is tough.
The attrition started to become more visible. We went by people who were walking, stopping at the aid stations. Once in a while, someone tried to run with us as went by. I told Eric he should go if he was ready, but he stayed with me and we just kept moving up.
That was pretty much it until we went into the park. A woman went by us and that was what Eric needed to shake out the discomfort in his leg. By the time we'd finished climbing the hill and going down the other side to where the bagpipes were, he had a good 15 seconds on me. As I went over the bridge, I saw George Buchanan in the distance.
EH caught him, and they both took off- so much for catching up to George and getting a super-fast finish.
To be honest, the last two miles I felt like I was not really at that next level. However, in the last .4 miles, it all came together. I passed about half a dozen people including one of the elite runners right on the line.
Then it was beer and hanging out with friends, and all in all, a good day. I managed to trim 30 seconds off last year's time, down some serious Red Hook, and then mow the lawn...
1 comment:
Alan,
Congratulations w/ your race at New Haven. Thought you ran a strategic race (your splits were close to even, though the second half of the course is much harder than the first half).
As for my race, like yourself I have run New Haven annually, since 1998 (and twice in high school, circa 1991, and 1992), though the 2008 edition wasn't a win, nor a place, more like a show. Wasn't content w/ the race. Seems like every race this year has been an epic struggle, w/ the expectation that the next race will return to form. I am sure I will see you at a future race, like MADD 5-mile or the Hartford 8K X-Country.
Keep up the good work, and intelligent racing.
-Barks
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