rob field

54:27 53:29

The Peachtree did not go as well as I might have hoped, but certainly better than I had any right to expect. I had a bout of food poisoning just three days before the race and had just been able to start eating solid foods again the day before the race, so my plan was to take it easy. That was the plan, which I forgot about completely as soon as the race started.

At 7:30 when the race started, it was a balmy 74 degrees, but with no cloud cover to speak of, only a slight haze, it was only to get warmer from there. I had a great starting position in time group 1a, just behind the invited runners, the seeded and sub-seeded runners. There were maybe a thousand folks ahead of me at the start, but a good 65,000 behind me. I was a little nervous about that and of being able to keep the pace starting in a group where everyone where everyone had to submit a qualifying 10K time of under 50:00 to get there. I had done it, but it had been about 10 months and, at least for the moment, I am not quite that fast.

I started the race running at a pretty good clip. I passed the first mile mark after 9 minutes, which given the slow start of any big race, meant I was running at a fast pace. The temperature climbed steadily as the race progressed and the sun rose in the sky. I am usually not big on water stations, but given my recent illness and its dehydrating effects, I hit most of the water stations grabbing both water to drink and to dump over my head.

As we ran past the Catholic Church close to mile 2, they had the holy water sprinklers running as well as the priests splashing out blessing and holy water. I didn’t burst into flames, which I took as a good sign.

The Peachtree is flat or downhill until mile 3 and that is about where I started to remember that I was going to relax, take it easy, and just enjoy the run. In fact, what I had done was push as hard as possible and worked to pass as many people as possible. Suddenly it was as if someone turned of the energy spigot. I was exhausted. Much more exhausted that I normally get on my morning runs. The climb up the aptly named “Cardiac Hill” was tough. I slowed way, way down as I made my way up. I was not the only one. Many folks slowed way down or just started walking up the hill at that point.

I made the top of the hill without stopping, but after that, it became a real effort of will to keep going and my pace dropped way down. At least it felt like it did. In retrospect, I think the perceived effort went way up, and the pace only dropped of a little.

Mile 5 was the next uphill section, but only mildly so. At this point, my focus was on finishing the race without having to stop and walk. I hand no more time goals. My goal was just to finish, finish, finish.

Just after mile 5, the race makes its only turn off Peachtree onto 10th Street. I was past the hills and getting a little confidence back. I passed the photo bridge where the photographer’s were out snapping everyone’s photo. I stepped up the pace thinking I was just about at the finish, only to discover I had done so a few hundred yards too early. I was out of gas and was ready to coast on to the finish line until I heard someone call out a time of 53:00. I didn’t think I had any energy left in the tank, but as soon as I heard that, I kicked it up another notch and pushed it as hard as I could. I cussed, swore, and exhorted myself to get moving. I was determined to cross the finish under the 55-minute mark. And I did. In the men’s open division, I placed 1292. Overall, I placed 3061. My official finish time, as measured from the starting gun, was 54:27. My bragging rights time, as measured from when I crossed the starting line, was 53:29.

That's my mom in the picture with me. She ran as well, at an age that cannot be disclosed if I ever want a home cooked meal again. How cool is that!

course map (#12192)