Bristol 5k Race Report

As Knapp stated in his report, we decided a few nights ago that we wanted to run a race this weekend just to see how we were progressing. I was pessimistic going into the race because I really haven't been running as much as I should be lately and the wear and tear of standing on my feet for 10 hours every day is starting to take its toll on my body. However, I was extra motivated on Thursday night after getting home from work and deciding to sign up for the race. So I took to the bike path for my best estimation of a 5k. I was slightly encouraged by results, posting a time just under 24 minutes, which would have been a PR had it been officially timed.

Yesterday, I compiled my playlist for the race. After my debacle at Matty's 5k I decided to maximize the adreneline for this playlist and try as hard as I could to crush my PR.

The EPIC ADRENALINE PACKED playlist:

1) Sleigh Bells - Tell 'Em - Sometimes you just need really loud fuzzed out guitars to get you jacked up

2) Daft Punk - One More Time - This song never fails to get me going/dancing

3) DFA 1979 - Romantic Rights - I have to thank Tang for introducing me to this 2 and a half minute guitar driven monster

4) Wavves - So Bored - A quick paced punk-pop song with terrible production values, but it really gets the job done

5) Tokyo Police Club - Be Good - One of many awesome songs from the Lessons in Crime EP and another Tang find. Still one of my favorite albums 3 years later.

6) Sleigh Bells - Straight A's - More of the same

7) The Rapture - Echoes - Another awesome quick paced dance rock song

8) TV on the Radio - Wolf Like Me - One of my favorite songs from one of my favorite bands

The race itself was pretty ideal. Colt State Park was beautiful and much of the race was run right along the Narragansett Bay. The weather was near perfect and the only thing that really held me back at all was the mildly hilly terrain (HILLS COURSE). Other than the beginning of the race, where I was held back by the scrubs, I kept a really solid pace. I had a really solid 7:20 for the first 2 miles, and while I slowed down a little for the last one 1.1 miles, for the most part I kept that pace for the whole race. For the last mile or so my motivation was to catch some kid wearing all blue in front of me. I passed him with about a quarter mile to go and no one passed me for the entire race. I finished with a time of 22:59, a new PR and I was 23rd over all in a race of I think about 230 people. Very pleased overall with my race, it was pretty epic.