On Eagles Wings 5K Race Report

Fancy name for a small race. Sunday I ventured down to the land of Gewilli and Il Bruce to race a little 5k by the bay in Barrington, RI. Not that I couldn't have found a 5k closer to home on a Sunday in May. There were several, which of course spreads out the talent quite a bit. The past two weekends I've seen 5k races paying $150 to win end up having an 18 minute plus time take the top spot. Now, not that we're bounty hunters here at solobreak or anything like that, but with twenty-one competition entry fees already paid for calendar 2008, and just $25 from JP and I think $15 from Ninigret to show for it, cash flows have been pretty negative. The idea of winning money in a running race was nothing more than a pipe dream just a year or so ago, but what the hell, now even with my no coach, no plan, no speedwork, one lonely hour of running a week approach, I think I can run a low 18.

Originally the Glastonbury Duathlon was penciled on the schedule for the 18th, but that got nixed for the aforementioned cash flow issues. At $75 to enter, plus a tank of gas to get there, and the 7 am start requiring an overnighter, that idea faded quickly. So, after racing Sunapee in the Cat 3's on Saturday (finishing out of the money), then riding a few hours with Hilljunkie and Dave P. afterwards, my legs were ripe for a running race. A quick scan of coolrunning found a 5k in nearby Norwell paying $300, $200, $100 for the top three. That ought to draw all the best runners. Now let's see if anyone else is paying cash. Score! Barrington was not only advertising $100-$75-$50, but the race wasn't until 1 pm. This gave me time in the morning to straighten the bent derailleur hanger which had left me with about five gears that didn't skip on Saturday, as well as get in an hour and a half test ride to loosen up my par-boiled legs. Plus the course was certified distance. Oops. Pushed it a bit far and didn't leave home until 11:45, needing to stop for gas, and racing to Barrington...

The drive down ended up being a good warmup, because my HR was soaring when it seemed I'd miss the start. No worries though, reg was still open at 12:50 and I got my number, threw my commemorative t-shirt in the car and trotted to the line about ten seconds before the gun went off. As usual at these things, a handful of high school kids went out at a five minute pace (more on that later), only to blow a half mile in. We were running straight toward the ocean, into a stiff breeze. I slotted in right behind a guy who looked like he'd do OK. One guy pulled away from the group. Nobody followed. OK, there goes the $100, which was to be expected. Then another guy started to distance himself a bit, and he was big, offering a good draft, so I went around my guy and bridged up. We hit mile one at 5:39. Hang on.

There was a slight uphill as we approached a 90 degree turn right on the water. Now the wind was from the left. Me and "the Hoff" as I'll call him (because he bore a slight resemblance, and because I saw a rerun of Dodgeball Saturday night) opened up a very slight gap on those behind. The leader was gone, at least thirty seconds ahead. The Hoff ran in the middle of the road, allowing me to echelon on his right. He did not seem to be the least bit concerned about my presence, and he was not even breathing hard, so I quickly calculated that the guy was going to leave me in the dust before this was over. I was on my limit. My hopes turned to third, and I ran alongside the guy to see if I could get him to up his pace just a bit and draw us further out front. It seemed to work.

The race then turned onto a semi-paved goat path across a golf course. The footing sucked, and I was dieing. We hit mile two at 11:37, so that split was slower, 5:58. Returning to normal roads, the Hoff still looked strong and we had maybe ten seconds on the next guys. Then at about the sixteen minute mark he just upped it a little and I was gapped and gassed. The run to the finish was straight. I was looking back, oh yes. I wanted the money. This hurt. Focusing on midfoot striking and just trying to suck it up, I made it to mile 3 at 17:34 (5:56) and the line in 18:10. The next guy was only four seconds back, and he said I had the $50 sign on my back but he could not close it. Turned out the winner and the Hoff were both in their twenties, so I was the first master.

Post-race was rather deluxe, with good coffee, pizza, bagels, and all that. Awards came quickly, but my check was only for $25! Dohhh. Talked to the winner and he only got $75. Maybe they reduced it for a poor turnout. Oh well. They had a prize table too, but I did not realize I was entitled to go up there until after it had been picked over, but I still got another fuel belt (a four bottle this time) and I think those are about $35 retail, so not so shabby. 18:10 was a PR by five seconds, and this was my first running race cash. After driving home I headed out on the commuter bike because I'd installed a new saddle in preparation for using this bike on next weekend's ride, and I wanted to check the position. Got in another 2.5 hours, but not before flatting one of my "bulletproof" Conti Contact city tires from a massive shard of glass, and having it start pouring rain while I changed it. Then the spare tube was a leaker. Had to stop a few times to put in more CO2, which became a challenge as my hands were fucking frozen by the end of this ordeal. Bring on the summer. Thanks for reading.

PS - Oh yeah, speaking of high school runners, I checked the results for Norwell. The Woodsman's (so named for both his golf and Wompatuck off-course excursions) 14 year old son Henry took freaking third male with a time of 17:46. Heidi and Dan provided some good genes!