The Little Chemist That Could: Race Report: AJC Peachtree Road Race 10k

This was an awesome race experience. I typically shy away from "big" races, but this one was really truly a great one to do and I'm so so happy that I was talked into it. I mean... it's the biggest #10kTuesday in the world (60,000 participants); how could I not??

I have to thank Angelina and Jerry for their wonderful hospitality - I was well-fed, well-rested, and had awesome company on top of it all... can't ask for much more! They were also kind enough to pick up my race packet, which made things very simple.

Pre-race:
I left my family July 4th gathering at Lake Wateree to head to Atlanta on Monday afternoon. Arrived at A&J's late afternoon, hung out and caught up with them, enjoyed dinner, then headed to bed early.

I also got to be one of the night-before-race Flat People!

On race morning, I woke up with my 4:25 a.m. alarm, dressed, and we rolled out in the car to the MARTA station a bit before 5 a.m. Caught the 5:15 a.m. train and were in the race vicinity well before 6. As much as a pre-5 a.m. alarm sucks, it's so nice to not be worried about getting to the start on time and being able to wander around the race area before it gets too crowded (plus, the port-a-potties are still CLEAN!).

Start line at dawn

We hung out at the designated meeting point for the #10kTuesday group photo for about an hour and greeted people as they arrived. Various people did warm-up laps here and there, and eventually we all went to our respective starting corrals.

#itsathing

A large part of the group was in B Wave (including me) which was cool because we got to watch the national anthem, complete with flyover by fighter jets. Definitely one way to get you pumped up for a race!

Side anecdote: One thing that was noticeable was the heightened security of the race. Police everywhere, on horses, on bicycles, in what looked like tactical golf carts (I'm sure there's a name for them). Felt very secure. I also noticed at every cross-street there were large trucks (garbage trucks, moving trucks, dump trucks) parked across the roadway... realized it was to prevent any other vehicles from plowing across the race course. Because apparently that's a thing now. Sad that it has to be done, but it made me feel safe that they'd thought about that sort of thing.

Back to the story...

The Race
I had zero plans going into this race. In the past few weeks, I had fleeting thoughts of a sub-50 goal, or even a PR goal (my existing PR of 48:43 was from the Reedy River 10k in 2012). With the weather predicted to be in the DANGEROUS CODE RED zone, I wasn't sure what would happen. I decided to just run what I felt and let the chips fall where they may.

Yep. Hot.

Angelina and I started out together, weaving in and out of people during the first half mile or so. It wasn't long before A told me "see you at the finish" and decided to hold a steady pace... I pressed onward, knowing if I was going to have a shot at a PR I'd need to bank some extra minutes within the first 5k, before reaching Cardiac Hill.

This is the course profile. Cardiac starts just before Mile 3.

I felt pretty good through the first 5k. The city buildings shaded a good portion of the course, but boy it was warm. I made a conscious effort to not look at my watch to check my splits as each mile buzzed by... I was running by feel, going as hard as I felt that I could. I was tired but still feeling good as I started the climb up Cardiac Hill... by the time I reached the top, I was TOAST.

Miles 4 and 5 were by far my slowest, and I was struggling mentally to keep running. I wanted to walk SO BADLY, but I kept pressing, slowing my pace as much as I felt I needed in order to recover a bit. Once I saw the Mile 5 sign, I told myself to just get it done. Push to the end. FINISH IT. I turned the corner onto 10th and glanced at my watch to see if it was worth pushing or if a PR was impossible... my time was just ticking towards the end of the 43:XX time, so with half a mile to go, I knew I could run a 10-minute pace and still get within range of my current PR. I knew I could push faster than 10:00/mi, so I went for it.

The hardest thing on this course (besides the last half being almost entirely uphill) is that as you turn onto 10th, you get fooled into thinking the finish line is closer than it actually is. First you see the scaffolding arch for the "finish" photographer... except you still haven't even reached the 6 Mile marker at this point. Then you see 'Mile 6' in the distance and keep thinking, okay, maybe the NEXT intersection?? There are small enough hills that visibility is limited, so you can't even see the finish line as you crest each little incline. Then there's the fences along the sides of the course for the spectators... you think okay NOW am I close?! Not quite... keep going... FINALLY there's the finish line, but it's soooooo much farther than it should be. At least the last ~100 yards or so is downhill.

Oooof.

I stagger into the finish chutes and get water, t-shirt, snacks... and desperately try to stop sweating (futile).

Post-Race
The finish area is huge, and it took me a while to locate the rest of the group (I was on the clear opposite side of the area from where I was supposed to be ... oops.

Post-race selfie. It was HOT.

We gathered, shared brief stories and congrats, and of course enjoyed a post-race beer. Waited for one of our crew who had needed medical attention (she was fine afterwards, thank goodness) and eventually began the mile+ walk back to the MARTA station.

The Results
PR obtained!!