2015 ZENA ROAD RUNS 15K RACE REPORT

Leave it to me to look sleepy despite the 11am start.

After a year absence it was back to the Zena Road Runs in 2015. I was able to convince some of my PRC pals to join me... unfortunately I had to drive separately because I needed to jet right after the race to pick up Brandon and hang out with him for the Super Bowl. On the way down there I stopped at McDonald's and had an Egg McMuffin meal with a coffee for breakfast. A potentially dangerous decision. It worked out though.

The race started at 11:00am, which was super nice. I thought it started at 10am, which I was already happy about, so 11am was even better. Rarely can you sleep in that much for a race. Whether it helped or not is up for debate, but for someone who is not a morning person it was much appreciated. When you are running on country roads in the winter there is absolutely no reason for an early start, so I'm glad they realize that!

I parked on a tricky gravely slope (I seriously thought my car was going to tip over) and then went to go get my bib. Love when checking in takes 15 seconds. I really like how simple yet well put on this race is. These cheaper races put on by local running clubs are really just the best, purest events you can attend. They don't rip you off and always are well done. Consider me a fan! I met up with my peeps and chatted with them until the race start.

THE FIRST THREE (8:30, 7:58, 7:59)

Unlike two years ago, the start was a little more organized this year in that they had someone on a loudspeaker announce that the race was about to begin, sing the national anthem, and then countdown to the horn. It wasn't just a random horn like two years ago, so that was an improvement.

The first hill was no joke though. I remembered it being tough and it certainly lived up to my memory. Looking back it was 300 feet of gain in the first 2/3rds of a mile. After that initial "death climb" it levels out and then goes uphill a couple more times in the first few miles. Really that first climb is the tough part though, the rest wasn't too bad. I was happy with an 8:30 for that first mile considering the terrain.

Apparently I do catch air when I run.

After about a mile and a half it switches to gravel and honestly that was no big deal. It really annoyed me the last time I ran this race, but that was "early" in my running "career" so maybe I just wasn't used to it. It also helped that the parts worn down by cars driving where quite wide and defined and for the most part you were just running off packed dirt. Overall I wanted to average 8:30/mile over this section and I did about 8:10/mile, so things were off to a good start.

THE MIDDLE THREE (6:55, 6:37, 6:58)

These miles are great. You get to fly downhill and the gravel changes back to pavement. The combination of the two leads to some really good mile times. Like two years ago, the fifth mile was my fastest. It is just a continuous, gradual downhill that makes running easy without feeling like you are pounding your joints. It is great practice for the Shamrock Run, whose final stretch into downtown is quite similar.

The final mile of these three starts to level off. That final 6:58 had some downhill in the beginning but actually had a hill at the end. My goal was go to sub 7 average on these, so mission accomplished there. The 6:37 was honestly a surprise, I didn't feel like I was running that fast... that is my 5k PR pace! After not doing much speedwork it was still nice to hit sub 7s in the middle of a 15k... even if they were downhill aided. At this point my A goal was within reach as long as I finished strong.

THE FINAL THREE (7:34, 7:33, 7:04)

Finish strong I did. These final three miles can be accurately described as "rolling hills." To be honest I didn't mind a little uphill though. My muscles needed a break from the downhill and the uphill actually felt kind of good. By the time my lungs would start to tire with the uphill I was usually right near the top of the hill. There was only one hill that really made me slow down, I looked at my watch at the top and I was going 8:40. Wherever that was I made it up on the following downhill.

At the finish!

Based on the calculations in my head I knew I was on sub 1:10 pace but that it might be close. I wanted to finish strong and possibly even finish under 1:09. That 7:04 final mile required a lot of effort but honestly I didn't mind giving it. My head was in a pretty good place and I knew I was running a great race. You can see the finish from a ways off, so I didn't mind pushing a little harder knowing that relief was near.

I crossed the finish line and stopped my watch at 1:08:46. The official time came back at 1:08:42. 7:23 a mile! Not bad at all! Alejandro finished about two minutes ahead of me and Glenn about ten minutes behind. Felt good to leave him in the dust after he burned me at the Rivalry Clash, not going to lie. All told though I was concerned about my race and I honestly couldn't have been happier. I ended up getting 2nd (out of 2, shouldn't have invited Ale) in my age group and got a fancy ribbon.

Really like this race! I'll be back next year assuming it doesn't conflict with the Miami Marathon like in 2014.

Official Results: 1:08:42, 7:23/mile. 26/85 overall, 23/55 male.