Holyoke St. Patrick's Day 10k

Saturday: Holyoke St. Patrick's 10k, 35:32, 34th
Results
Overall it was a very fun day, but I did not run well.   Shara and I left Westerly early to take the trek up to Holyoke so we could arrive early, get a good parking spot, and be able to "chill" before the race started.  After arriving shortly after 10 am, we picked up our numbers and t-shirts, talked to race director and my old friend Brian Donahue, and then went back to the car to kill some time.  With a 1 pm start, I did not have a good fueling plan.  Do I eat a full lunch?  Sandwich?  Snacks?  I opted for water and snacks and right before I started to warmup, I was already cramping up.  The warmup made me feel a bit better. Post warm-up, Shara and I went to find some of her friends and college roommates, who were waiting for us before it down poured on us for about 5 minutes.  Great start to the day.  We headed over to the start line, aligned in our appropriate starting areas, and waiting for national anthem and gun to go off.  Like two years ago, the final 10 minutes before the race gave me the opportunity to catch up with some old running friends.  Before you knew, gun went off, and the crowd was nuts.

Mile 1: tried to settle in and was in about 50th place and running close to 5 minute pace.  I reminded myself that this is the only flat mile of the race and I needed to play smart and run safe.  5:25

Mile 2: Here comes the hills..."this can't be too bad, right?"  Reminded myself to stay relaxed.  6:00..not good

Mile 3:  Still climbing.  So far the hills were mostly gradual, but they just didn't let up and I was feeling it.  Right before hitting the mile marker, there was a quick downfill that I really welcomed. Right before turning the corner after mile 3, some old high school friends were cheering and encouraging me.  I thought to myself, "hopefully a new race starts now."  6:05..damn.

Mile 4: Turned the corner and the biggest hill of the day loomed.  Starting to get dejected..I'm not passing anyone and no one's passing me. Thoughts-"hang on, you aren't going to run fast, but your moving along the course.  After the first solid hill of mile 4, there were some slight rollers before hitting Holyoke Community College and I was feeling the pain.  6:06..

Mile 5:  Relief.   The downhill mile was upon us and my legs were trash.  My goal at this point was not to let anyone pass me.  I was able to get closer to the next two guys ahead of me. 5:13-I like!!  Just under 29 for 5 miles.  I was happy with this mile, but also realized my goal of running sub 35 was very, very slim.

Mile 6:  Another hill climb, not as steep as the others, but enough already!!  The crowds thickened. Lots of noise. Lots of beer stands (seriously, if you wanted one, people had them set up).  There was one more guy, Chris Buell, that I wanted to go after.  Shortly after the hill, I went after him and made a very small gap that I told myself to hang on to.  Mile 6: 5:29..wish I could have ran like this all day.

Right before the final turn, I ran into a few female high school classmates who were cheering me on and offering motivation.  I turn the final corner, packed with thousands of people and can hear Buell closing on me.  I don't think so buddy.  Finished in 35:31..and was beat.  Military and police moved runners through and I was able to meet up with my cousin Pat, his wife, and mother-in-law who all came out to watch up.  The cramping immediately came back and I was struggled for awhile.

Shara finished in an impressive 42:14..she's ran this race four times and this was her fastest.

Post race, we hang out for a while.  It was like a massive block party.  Before shooting back to Rhody, we stopped by my grandparents for a visit.  All in all it was a fun day, just wasn't happy with my race.  Provides me motivation I guess.

Interesting thoughts/notes:
-Had a starting line conversation with old Springfield Harrier Teammate and Masters Star, Kent Lemme.  For years Kent dominated the Masters scene and performed very well in the USATF-NE Circuit.  He mentioned to me how fast some of the masters guys are now.  "This guy named Mike Galoob ran a 1:10 in New Bedford last week."  We chatted it up about our South County friend a bit, who is turning heads on the Masters Scene.  Nice.

-Another interesting connection..Joe Hegarty, an old friend who ran for Keene and now who runs for Whirlaway Racing Team, finished right in front of me.  He's good friends with Josh Ferenc and knows of the Hammett's.

-The hills did not let up.  Thought I was in better shape than 2012..need to plan/train better for this in 2014.

-Total number of finishers: 5934

-Total number of finishers under 40 minutes: 110