GW Birthday 10k Recap

Sunday, February 17 was my my first race of 2013: the George Washington Birthday Classic 10k in Alexandria, VA. Its still fairly early in the season, and still definitely winter in the DC metro area.

Sunday morning was COLD.  Race time was 8 AM, and it was colder in Alexandria than DC, with a wind chill of about 19F when it was all said and done.  I'm a born and raised Texan, and generally wuss out when the temp drops much below 40F.

Race Map - Good thing I drove the course the night before!

This was also my longest run to date.  I always have a hard time breaking past the 4 mile mark, so I knew signing up for a race would force me to get in my long run for the weekend.  I originally signed up with my coworker, Kate, but she had to cancel last minute as she was double booked.

6.34 done - Woo!

Between running alone, the distance, and the cold temperatures, I knew that this race was going to be all about mental toughness.

The course was a straight out and back down Eisenhower Ave. in Alexandria - generally flat with the exception of an overpass (that counts, right?) and a slight uphill toward the turn-around point.  The first 2 miles were brutally cold, but soon after started to warm up.  It was nice to be in a smaller race, about 600 participants total, and not have to fight throngs of people for the first mile.  There were a fair number of runners blazing the trail about 5:00/mi, but it was nice to see that most people seemed to be like me, out for their first run of 2013.

Despite the cold, the wind, and running alone, I finished my longest run up to that point in 1:04:16, or 10:08 pace. I have really mixed feelings looking back a week out now. I really wanted to be under 10 minutes per mile, and ideally wanted to be under an hour, but I'm just happy to have this one under my belt and behind me.  I'm proud of myself for seeing it through, and pretty psyched to rock my new tech Tee that came with my registration fee. Woot!