The weatherman predicted rain, he would not disappoint. Not a hard rain, and not as cold as we were first led to believe. Steady rain fell throughout the race. It had rained all night long, and all day Friday so the course was very wet. The road and track at Shelby Park was somewhat slippery so extra care had to be taken throughout.I stepped on the first puddle early on and my "wet-proof" socks were put to the test early. I got to complaining to myself about the wet feet...until I saw a runner that couldn't walk. The one and only wheelchair on the race was on his way back as I was making my way up. I put the wet feet out of my mind and never gave them a second thought.
The plan was to pace my run at 9:20, but every time I peeked at my Garmin I was somewhere around the 8:00 pace. This was just to fast, but the course was flat and I felt great. I made a conscientious effort to slow down. And then it happened...
Around mile 9, I felt a pain on my knee I had never felt before. A sharp, stabbing, throbbing, electrifying pain that started on my knee and traveled all the way up my thigh. I stopped and stretched for a few minutes and kept on going. I could only go about 3/4 of a mile before I had to stop and stretch again. This went on for the remainder of the race. At times the pain was intense but I was so close to the end that I just did what I had to do to make it to the finish line. After all, DNF is not an option.
I finished the race in 2hrs 7min and change. My goal was 2hrs 10min. What this tells me is that I started way to fast.
After the race I came home and had a good meal then I decided to take a good long rest. Maybe this would help the knee. I didn't. I jumped on the internet and found that my ITB could be the problem. I will make an appointment with the doctor on Monday just to make sure.
Today I went to the pool for an active recovery workout. I had the best mile swim I have ever had.
Life's still good! No, Life is GREAT!
So awesome. I am about half your age and jsut ran my first 15K. I think triathlon is an amazing life changing sport and I hope more people read your blog and mine. It will make a healthier happier place. Thanks for the updates via twitter and here.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! Thanks for the inspiration! Best wishes for your health and the wellness of your knee.
ReplyDeleteHi
ReplyDeleteGreat report. you overcame alot and still finished. that's what makes us all get inspiration from one another. i must admit i'm pretty scared about the 30k(18mi) in 13 days and i'm worried about the weather of all things. i'll be thinking of you and others like you the whole time. its where i pull my strength from sometimes to just get through and put that one foot in front of the other inspite of all the reasons Not to. CONGRATULATIONS on your super finish.