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Race Result

Racer: Steve Smith
Race: Plaza America 5K
Date: Sunday, April 18, 2004
Location: Reston, VA
Race Type: Run - 5 km
Age Group: Male 30 - 34
Time: 0:17:23
Overall Place: 10
Comment: Well, 6th OA not including the womens :)



Race Report:



This is what you need to know about the Plaza America 5K:

* The best post-race food of any race I've ever attended
* Challenging course
* Competitive field drawn to the cash prizes
* Kids races for the whole family
* A great race with all the bases covered

Unless you absolutely detest running over hills, even over a mere 3 miles, this is a fantastic race. The race course is challenging, leaving from the Plaza America, on Sunset Hills Rd, turning on Old Reston Ave for the first hill, an easy one. The course turns again onto Temporary Road for a few hundred feet before turning right onto North Shore Dr and a few rollers. They have miles one and two staffed with people calling out your split, and water just before the 2nd mile. From North Shore you turn onto Wiehle, descend a bit before the first juicy hill. One more turn takes you onto Sunset Hills Rd (they close one lane of traffic for the runners) and two long climbs. If you're racing this race, this is where things get interesting. You cross Sunset Hills (they have traffic control to aid this) to finish in the Plaza.

There you will find a lot of excellent food, some pre-drawn raffle awards, and a lot of kids getting ready for their fun runs.

Given the prize money available (500/250/125 M&F), this race attracts a fast crowd. Given the fun run and its hometown feel, it attracts many families as well. It's a pretty good mix in my opinion. Oh yeah, there's that $125 award for the fastest Reston male & female, and age group awards from Footsteps as well.

My open 5K PR is on this course, which tells you how many open 5Ks I run (you know you're a triathlete when all your running PRs are from multisport races). Coming off a rough day of racing and training on Saturday, my legs were tired. This was going to be hard no matter what I did.

I caught up with Tom Crandall before the race and we reveled in the weather. 2003 offered much cooler and MUCH windier conditions. We looked around for some of the usual suspects. Mark Mollander, some north-African looking fellow, a group of Russian women (in full Russian race garb), and this guy I saw at South Lakes track on Thursday knocking out 30-second 200s, in spikes, were all that we could see. I guessed that Boston culled out many of the faster folks.

I wasn't sure if I'd be able to pull down the fastest Reston male award for the third straight year. It was really a matter of who showed up, because my legs were in no condition for excessive demands. They would do what they could, no less, no more. Mollander lives outside of Reston, leaving only the fellow I saw at the track, in spikes, as the only unknown.

We lined up at the start and took off. There was a lone male talking to the Russian women who took off like a rabbit, with another guy in tow. Mr Spikes, or Todd as I learned after the race, went chasing after them. The north African fellow sorta ambled along behind them after a few moments. Later, when he finished yawning, he'd cruise in for the win. Mark Mollander pushed off to follow them as well. Todd would fall back from the lead and battle Mollander pretty closely until I lost view of them just before mile 3. The others were all gone from my view pretty quickly and I was alone for a short, hard run.

I hit mile one in 5:22. Not bad given the small hill and Saturday's activities. Around mile 1.5 I hear an entire pack of people coming up from behind. A whole pack? I wonder to myself ... that's not right. Three women and a lone male slowly passed me by. It made sense, I figured. I hadn't been "chick'd" in this race yet and that was a surprise. There are plenty of women in the mid-Atlantic that can run circles around me and, with $500 for first place, I was surprised that the female winning times have been > 17:00 in the past.

I tried to hang on but gave up. Mile 2 came in 10:50, which I was happy with. I wasn't pushing myself too hard. I was hurting, my legs were hurting specifically, but I didn't have to mentally bear down on myself. There was no chance of my catching the folks ahead of me, and it was a ways back to the next runner. As for that fellow following the Russians, I just hoped he didn't live in Reston, because that was about all I could do about the situation.

I hit the final stretch on Sunset Hills Road and started to slowly increase the pace. I've done this race three times now and I know if I'm hurting before I start Sunset Hills I'll be miserable (and, more importantly, I'll slow down significantly) in the final stretch. Starting around mile 2.5 I really started pushing, digging into my mental reserves. I'd coasted a bit until here, and now I figured I should put everything left. I crossed the finish line absolutely shelled, nearly crashing into Veronica Crandall after I crossed the line. Sorry V, I was a sweaty mess :)

For the third straight year, I took the fastest Reston male prize and 2nd place in my age group. Only this year I pulled this off with a 17:22 (in the previous two years I'd finished with a 16:58, give or take a few tenths). Given my final time and my 10:50 2-mile split, I must have slowed appreciably on Wiehle and the first part of Sunset Hills ... probably a subconcious self-preservation instinct to get ready for the final push.

And, well, for the third straight year, I went out and ran a slow 10 miles after the race. Given the incredible selection of post-race food, including Baja Fresh burritos, pizza, Vie De France sweets, hamburgers, hotdogs and oh-so-much more, it's either run 10 miles or sit around and gain 4 pounds of body fat. This year I was able to find a partner in crime, so Rob Weitzel and I went out for a run along the W&OD horse path. By the way, that path is a LOT hillier than the W&OD itself. This was a terrible slog for me, especially toward the end as I started getting really thirsty. I can honestly say that was one of the tougher runs I've had recently.

All in all, good weekend of training :) I figure the $125 covered my hotel, gas and tolls for Brandywine, with just enough left over for a celebratory burger at Glory Days for lunch.