Carver 5-Mile

Heather and I drove down early (left Hamilton at 6:05) and made good time. Arrived in Carver around 7:30 with a Dunkin stop near home and a bathroom stop near the race. We're convinced we want to retire to the Cape someday (maybe around the year 2050), and Carver has a similar feel.

Got our numbers without much hassle, unlike many CMS teammates, who discovered upon arrival that they were not registered. Warmed up on the last mile of the course with a big group of CMS men - caught up with Greg Ward and talked Cape Cod with a couple guys.

Couple of strides on the main drag before the gun went off. Stuck to my plan about getting off to a good start, maybe a little too good of a start. First mile felt fast, but not uncomfortable. Garmin beeped for a mile right at the mark in 4:50. I was near JJ, Will Dobbie, and eventual winner Kevin Johnson.

2nd mile went by in 5:09 for a two-mile split of right around 10-flat. Great, I thought, low-25's seems like a good shot. I was in about 10th place at this point. From here, I don't know if it was the heat, the high mileage of the week or the fast start, but I couldn't really seem to maintain. JJ got further and further ahead of me along with the BAA tandem of Dobbie and Terry Shea. Mile 3 was a sobering 5:20 and mile 4 a scandalous 5:28. I got passed by Pete Mallett, Nick Crowell, Brennan Bonner and Chad Carr. The only person I went by in that stretch was an obviously hurting or relenting Josh Ferenc. I thought maybe Joseph Koech was coming back, but I never made up the difference. I passed Pete in the last couple hundred meters and managed a last mile of 5:17 for a grand total of 26:05. For the second straight Grand Prix event, I finished one spot behind the top master.

Summary: 3rd CMS (same as Stowe) and 14th overall (better than at Stowe) was encouraging, although the time was definitely a little disappointing. Considering that I ran 25:17 in May on a similarly flat course in Gloucester all by myself, I assumed that the competition would help rather than hurt my time. Admittedly, my mileage has been higher than ever or at least higher than it has been in a long time and I am getting used to how that affects me. Hopefully in another couple weeks I'll be ready to race better in the midst of the high mileage. As temps continue to drop, I look forward to a productive fall; Cape Cod, maybe?

Cooled down with Jim P., Greg H., and Tim P. then ran into Heather just starting her cooldown as we were almost back. Did a couple more miles with her, then headed back home.

note: the drive down took about 1:20, the drive back took about 2:30.

Pics courtesy of Ted and Mary Tyler @www.jimrhoades.com