2015 SHAMROCK RUN 15K RACE REPORT

Rolling into the finish line in the wet and soggy Shamrock Run 15k.

Had a fun weekend hosting Katie from Runs for Cookies. I'd recap the trip, but she already did it better than I could, so you can read that here. Onto the race!

I got a decent amount of sleep before the race. Definitely not my worst sleep before the Shamrock... previous years I had been nervous about the race and the pressure to PR, but this year I knew I wasn't going to be close to PRing so I didn't really care. So I slept pretty well! Did have a couple beers that evening that probably didn't help the next morning, but I still would have sucked without them.

Early in the race along Broadway.

The weather was a bummer, after all that sunshine the previous week it poured all weekend so everyone was drenched and Katie had to spectate in the rain. At least we grabbed an umbrella! I timed the MAX perfectly again (I did this in 2013), hopping out and getting into the chute with minutes to spare. Really like doing that "close call" when the weather is shitty. Just don't ever want to be late... while the race is chip timed, I have a feeling trying to make a move from the back of the pack would be an exercise in frustration due to the race size.

Now, I expected to do "not well," but I didn't expect to do quite as crappy as I did. A good four minutes off the Zena 15k just 7 weeks prior! Ay poppy! All on a slightly easier course too. Oops. I don't feel bad though because I left it all out there. Maybe I could have absolutely killed myself for a low 1:12. That's about it. There was no way I was going sub 1:10 or getting close to that Zena mark. Just not in the fitness cards right now.

Let me talk about the race though. It started on time with the rain pounding down. After some weaving around slower runners and mini-lakes I settled into a groove about a mile into the race. Know this course by heart now and this first part is also a section of the Portland Marathon. First two miles came in about 7:20 each. Not bad, but off the 6:55s of last year. I knew a sub 1:10 wasn't in the cards at that point, my legs felt great but my breathing was labored.

A 7:49 up Broadway pretty much told the story of my day. Previous years that mile has been just slightly slower than the first two. This year the hill before the hill tuckered me out and I was already ready to be done. A year ago I was doing 7:40s on the tougher hills up Terwillager. Oh well. I just tried my hardest and that was enough. As long as you give it your all during a race there is nothing to be ashamed of!

Alejandro and I run up Terwillager.

The three miles up Terwillager went as such: 8:30, 8:56, 8:31. I knew when I ran 1:12 I averaged 8:30 so I was a little off that pace. That nine minute mile hurt. Little did I know, Alejandro was behind me most of this climb up the hill. He started behind me in the chute and slowly caught up. Anyways, he eventually caught me, we ran a mile or so together, then he separated down the hill. The hills weren't terrible, I didn't feel like I wanted to walk like in 2013, but I was just slower this year. Same effort, just slower. The bagpipers at the top of the hill were welcome to the ears.

I was hoping to be able to kill the downhill and still beat my 2013 time. My legs just weren't having it though. They started to tire and I could tell I lost some of the distance fitness I had built up. That ten mile run a week back was way harder than it should have been, so it makes sense. I needed to average about 7:00/mile here to not PW, but could only come up with 7:19, 7:26, and 7:10. The legs were done. 7:05 pace for the final third of a mile. Again, sounds like a broken record, but I gave it my all so I wasn't upset.

I rolled through the finish line and looked at my watch... a personal worst 15k by almost 30 seconds. Oh well. I still really enjoyed the race. I love to challenge myself and it is always fun to race with other people. Overall I was still way in the front of the pack. So good times. Another Shamrock in the books. Hopefully next year I'll be in better shape!

Official Results: 1:12:55, 7:49/mile. 573/5556 overall, 449/2590 male, 87/346 M25-29 (see? still pretty good!)