Now It's Time to RACE

I got a great sleep last night, but now I feel REALLY nerved up. I probably won't sleep very well tonight but that's probably a good thing.

In February I ran a solid half, dipping into the 1:12:00's on a hilly 13.1. Almost exactly 2 months ago I PRed in a workout running 10 Miles in 54:40, hitting 5:28 pace. And, last Sunday I did a 6M tempo at 5:20 pace(and practically PRed in 10K).

The goal for Cherry Blossom is to click off low 5:20's the entire way. I'd like to run pretty even(I'm expecting the first mile will be at least 4-5 seconds fast), but ultimately keep the pace very even throughout miles 2-9, and have a good finishing kick the 10th mile.

I would like this to be a tad faster/or as fast as the goal 10M split I will want to go through at Dismal Swamp next weekend. So, the goal for Sunday is to quite simply get into the 53:00's. If I can do that I will definitely have a shot at running under the 1:11:00 mark for the half next weekend.

One would argue that I should not be racing 3 weeks after a disastrous Marathon-that I am not being smart-I am too ambitious-that I am overracing. But, as I look back on past performances, the reality is that sometimes you don't know what's going to happen. No matter how fit you think you are or what you see yourself doing. You have to take chances. You have to strike when the iron is hot. For me, I know the iron is hot right now. I know I am very fit. I didn't do all this training for nothing. I'm not going to just sit back and not race. I have more to give. I'm not injured, and I am 100% healthy, training very well. I have been healthy for 3+ years now. I believe things are going in the right direction. I am ready to compete.

This will be my last GRC race and then I will switch over to the PR squad. Although I will still train with the same people, I will miss racing in the GRC singlet.