Short Distance Summer, Race 2: Arcata Marsh 5K

When I pull up to the little peninsula sticking out into Arcata Bay, I'm the first runner to arrive. I make my way to the registration tent, sign my name at the top of the list and grab my bib number. I have about an hour until race time and spend much of it hunkered down in the car trying to stay warm. When it's finally warmup time, I set off on my own. Usually I travel with an entourage, but both Matt and Rachel are out of town so I'm all alone with my thoughts.

Y. Kim, SRRC photo.

Earlier in the week, I made the trek to Arcata to survey the course. They had to change the route a little and I wanted to check out the new course. The footing was still tricky in some spots, but it seemed doable. While I made my warmup loop through the first mile of the race course, I tried not to think about what my goal would be. When I first made summer plans, I thought it unreasonable to try and PR here. The course is one of the high school cross country routes, almost entirely dirt, and has some spots where I really have to watch where I put my feet. I decided that breaking my course PR of 22:39 would be a solid goal.

I line up next to Kenny, one of the club regulars. "What's your goal today?" he asks. "To make it hurt," I reply.  That's the main goal I have for all 5Ks. If it isn't agony, I'm probably not pushing hard enough.

Finally we're off. Zero to pain in less than ten seconds. I go out far too fast only because I know this stretch of two lane road squeezes down to singletrack within less than a quarter of a mile. I need to get ahead of all the little kids who go out too fast, I reason to myself.

Somewhere in mile 1, taken a few days before the race.

This race typically has mile marker cones so I've turned off my watch's auto lap feature but they were missing this year. While I'm running, I have a vague idea of my pace from the overall pace data field on my watch, but my splits are a mystery. It isn't until I get back home that Strava will tell me if I'm pacing well or not.

Mile 1: 6:38

We round another series of corners, passing through the first loop of this roughly figure-eight course. There's finally a straightaway and I can see more than one person ahead of me. Two people ahead is Yoshi, one of our club's superstars. He's one of the most decorated runners in our club's circuit history and I'm honestly surprised that I'm closing in on him like I am and it helps to fuel my speed. Each section of tricky footing slows me down a bit but I'm focusing on taking light and frequent steps and so far I haven't hit the ground.

Mile 2: 6:49

I pull alongside Yoshi and even though he's slowing a fair amount, he's still got enough energy to cheer me on, "Wow Karen! You are flying today!" as I pass. The surprise in his voice and his kind words echo in my head as I pick up the pace. I glance down at my watch and my overall pace registers a 6:49/mi, well below both my course and paved road PRs are.

There's a father-son team up ahead and I try my best to close the gap. I reach them just as we repeat another section of the figure-eight course from the beginning of the race. After another couple of turns, I'm finally on the long straightaway to the finish line. I'm hurting pretty badly but I try to close the gap on the next two guys ahead of me. From the pace on my watch, I might be close to breaking 21 minutes!

Those trees in the background are where the finish line is. Approximately mile 2.75.

Mile 3: 6:50

Y. Kim, SRRC photo.

I'm trying with all my might but there's absolutely no kick left. I cruise back into the parking lot and head for the finish line as quickly as I can. The clock is a little further away than it usually is and I arrive to see it ticking well over the 21 minute mark. I know I'm very close to running a new overall PR so I squeeze out any energy I have left in my legs.

Almost done!

Mile 3 to finish: 1:03 (7:06/mi)

I make 5Ks look fun, don't I?  Y. Kim, SRRC photo.

21:27
6:54/mi.
3rd Female

It takes a few moments to collect myself in the finishing chute. Then I grab a popsicle from the cooler and amble over to a few friends who have been running well this year. I ask Clay how he did who I can tell by his huge grin that he had a good day. He's been steadily improving this year, shaving minutes from his PRs just about every time he races. He's been working to break 20 minutes and finally did here! When we realize both of us now have a faster trail 5K PR than road, we high five. How awesome! :)

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After the miserable day at a 5K in June, I started to doubt my training. It was so nice to set a course PR by over a minute here and beat my road PR by five seconds to really bolster my confidence. One more race, a nice flat one on the road, would be just the ticket to dropping a little more time before the end of the season. The question remained: How fast can I go?