Run with the Wind 25k: Not Ready to Race Edition

The short:

I won a free entry to the Run with the Wind 25k by winning overall female in last year's race, so even though I'd missed nearly a month of workouts due to being sick, was still feeling weak, and felt in no way ready to run a race, I ran it anyway. I had pretty low expectations but was hoping I could manage 6:59 pace or win overall female. I did not do either; I went out with the first female for 6 miles, then paid for it for 9.5 miles. I finished second overall female in 1:51:37 (7:07 pace), and got a baseline for the season. I definitely should have started slower but in my mind I am still a little fast, and I am always a lot competitive.

My Strava activity is here.

Fast friends post-race

The long:

I almost didn't go to this race. I had a virus in late January to early February, and missed over 3 weeks of workouts because of how weak I was (once I tried and managed only 7:20ish pace). This was after I'd missed several early January workouts due to hamstring pain after my 6-hour race, which I ran a month after having COVID...it sounds worse all written out like this, lol! I'd been running quite a bit still, but just easy, and also no doubles. I had a lot of easy runs that were much harder than they should have been, and I felt pretty puny for quite awhile. In the 8 days leading up to this race, though, I started to perk back up and had a decent workout that also felt really great. I wouldn't had paid to run the race with not being ready, but since I had a free entry and my friends Amy and Colin were running, I decided to do it. I would be running long that day anyway!

Then the day before the race I was very nauseous most of the day and could barely eat. I also had a low grade fever when I got home from work. Those things lasted only about 8 hours, but my resting heart rate was super high and I was about to resign not going to the race, but after I forced down dinner around 7:30 p.m. I felt close normal again. It was really odd. I may have just eaten something that didn't agree with me, but whatever it was wasn't a confidence boost to my already deflated ego.

Not the jump you want to see the day before a race

Like last year, Amy and I rode together to meet Colin at the finish line. Amy and I left bags in Colin's car, which stayed there, and Colin rode with us to the starting line. Also like last year, the race ran from Sarcoxie to Carthage. In theory, it runs the direction that gives you a tailwind, but in reality there is usually a headwind for part and a tailwind for part since it runs two different directions. This year we ran against the wind going west and had a tailwind going north. It was nice going north but pretty demoralizing going west, especially at the end!

I didn't know what I could do or how I'd feel, so I decided I'd go out with the first woman if it seemed reasonable, and see if I could compete for the win. The race director sent out a race manual that contained a little summary of "the contestants", so I knew that the woman who'd gotten second behind me last year was running it. She hadn't been very far behind me, and though I'd tried to use the race as a workout last year, it had turned out that my 50k goal pace was pretty all-out on this race course without a taper. I knew I wasn't in the same place this year, but thought I'd shoot my shot for the win as long as she didn't go out blazing fast. The state record for my age was 1:48:38, so I also thought maybe she'd help drag me to that (I ran 1:45:37 in 2022, though the other 3 times I've run it I did not break 1:50).

Pre-race

I ended up running with the eventual female winner for the first 6 miles, at around 6:45 pace. She was friendly and kind, and I wish I could have hung on longer but I didn't have it. It kind of ended up being 6 miles of racing plus 9.5 miles of struggling. It was weird though, because I knew I was slowing down and absolutely didn't have it in me to speed up, but I still felt strong to keep running. Strong but not fast - as compared to the weak and not fast feeling I'd had during and right after my recent bad virus - so a step.

I remembered the course well from last year, so it was nice knowing where I was. I counted down the miles and never looked at my watch. Once I lost contact with the female leader I was completely alone for the rest of the race. I did all of the positive self-talk I could, and I enjoyed myself even though I wasn't running well. I took a gel with caffeine about halfway and it made me feel like a million bucks for a bit, though you can't tell from my splits. The hills were tough as I remembered, and the headwind for the first 6 miles and especially the final 3 miles was not my favorite. When I heard my watch beep mile 15 and realized I had another half mile against the wind uphill to the finish, I lost some optimism, but ran through the finish as best I could.

The moment I'd been waiting for!

I ended up finishing in 1:51:37, exactly 6:00 slower than last year. I didn't pace well, but even if I'd looked at my watch I really wouldn't have known where to start at because of all of the recent variables in my running and life. I have learned that I am very good at pacing by feel when I'm feeling normal, but very bad at it when I'm sick or weak (refer to my 2022 marathons)! Colin had started his cool down after he'd finished in 1:38 for the male overall win (he was going to run his 50k goal pace but ended up quicker), and when I finished we jogged to his car so I could grab a few things. We then jogged back out to see Amy come in. She finished in 2:01 and set a new state record for age 51!

Like last year, the cool down was a death march (during the race I'd promised myself I wasn't running a cool down, but ended up doing 2 miles my friends anyway). We then enjoyed some soup and socializing while waiting for the awards. They age and gender graded everyone to equalize competition, so although I was 2nd overall female and 1st masters female, I was 4th age graded in the entire field. Amy edged me with 3rd age graded, but I got Colin, who was 5th age graded. After we drove back to the start to get my car, Amy and I found a great little breakfast-all-day restaurant and had breakfast...at 2:30 p.m.! The race started at 9:00 and they didn't do the awards until the last runner was in and age-calculated, so although this race is close to home it's nearly an all-day affair.

The best meal ever

I am toying around with the idea of running the Prairie Spirit 50k in March again. I haven't been following a training schedule but I've been doing lots of back-to-back long runs (I just love running long on both Saturday and Sunday!), my mileage is sufficient, and I'm jogging a marathon on February 25 - so I'd be ready enough. This race showed me that endurance and distance are no problem for me right now, but holding a pace is. Last year I ran 6:44 for this race and 6:57 for Prairie Spirit, so maybe 7:07 would translate to a 7:20 pace 50k? I don't know that I'd be thrilled with that considering my history, but at the same time it seems really hard right now. If I could do it, it would give me the second fastest women's 50k ever run in Kansas, behind my own from last year. I am going to see what the forecast looks like! There is also Frisco as a 50k option...

So...we will see! Being uncertain about how I'm going to feel makes it difficult for me to decide what to do both training-wise and race-wise, but it's easy to go run every day, usually a long way, because I love and need that part more than ever.