Santa Monica Classic 10k

After last week's race in Big Sur I had a case of PMLDS (Post Marathon Let Down Syndrome).  We've all been there, and especially considering I didn't "race" it, I felt like I wanted to push myself a bit this weekend.  I didn't run much this last week - the knees are still week from Big Sur!  I did a short recovery jog, played some ice hockey Weds and went out for a 40 mile ride on Friday.  But today was the Santa Monica Classic 10k.  I've never done this distance, outside of my triathlon at least!  And for a good cause:  Heal the Bay

My plan was to go out at an 8:00 pace and try and pick it up after mile 2 if possible.  There was a climb before mile 4 and I knew I'd slow a bit there, but then it was all downhill - I wanted to punch it towards the end.

Wake up call: 6:15 AM.  I drove down to Santa Monica and jogged towards the start line about a mile away (it's a point to point, so I parked near the finish.)  I ran into my bro Eric from the LA Tri Club - we visited for a bit while the DJ at the start was trying WAY too hard...poor guy.

At 8 AM sharp we were off.  I tried to position myself towards the front - this is new for me!  I settled into a nice 8 minute pace, sometimes going into the high 7s a bit.  The first mile was through Main Street SM - nice.  At around 1 mile I saw my pal Billy running with his cousin.  He had mentioned he might come by and I was thrilled to see a friendly face (two if you count his cuz!)  We exchanged pleasantries and I carried on down to Ocean Ave.  Definitely a false flat between miles 1.5-3...but I chugged on!  I had my Garmin set to Time, Pace and Average Pace.  I wanted to keep the overall average pace below 8 to reach my goal of breaking 50 minutes.  In the back of my mind I would have loved to break 48...but this being my first 10k just wanted to try hard.

Between miles 3-4 we climbed about 100 vertical feet on San Vicente.  It sounds like nada, but this was a little rough for me trying to keep pace.  I slowed just a tad and was definitely feeling it at the turnaround.  I flew down that hill though!  I also ran into my buddy Bill Lockton who was watching the race in front of his house.

The final 2 miles was a gentle downhill and at the 5 mile mark there was Billy and his cuz again!  I was definitely struggling to hang on at this point, but Billy decided to run with me!  Pretty cool!  I was definitely kicking it as hard as I could - it was downhill after all.  Billy peeled off at the 6 mile mark and that last .2 felt like FOREVER!  But I made it - Garmin time = 48:11.  

What a great experience.  Love the shorter distance - it definitely breaks you in a different way!  Next week I'm in SB for screenings of my film and then running the SB Wine Country Half Marathon.  I was originally hoping for the low 1:50s (which would be a big PR) but seeing the LA Marathon is 3 weeks away I'm thinking of going a little easier - perhaps sub 2:00 (still a PR)

Here are my splits for today's race...

Mile 1: 8:00, 166 HR

Mile 2: 7:48, 177 HR

Mile 3: 8:00, 181 HR

Mile 4: 8:03, 185 HR

Mile 5: 7:26, 185 HR

Mile 6: 6:34 (!) 189 HR

Last .2 (on the Garmin it's .34...) 2:16, 192 HR

Chip Time: 48:11.7

Age Group: 40/167

Overall: 270/1663

Pics courtesy of Billy Burger:

About a mile in...

Mile 5 - not smiling!

Home stretch!  The hardest .2 ever...