March 17 - Equinoxilizer 4-Mile

AM: 4-mile race (20:54) - 10 miles
PM: 6 miles easy

This race took place less than 100 yards from my front door in Durham, so it was hard to pass up for the logistical ease. Following scrapping my VA Beach plans, I looked for a substitute and fortunately remembered this four-miler taking place in many of the same streets and neighborhoods I run on a regular basis.

However, this was the USATF North Carolina 4-Mile Championships, offering cash that went three deep. Thus, when I looked to my left at the starting line, I saw three pros from Zap Fitness; a sub-4:00 miler and recent grad from Duke; and BCTC teammates David Roche and Paul, both of whom have faster credentials than me. Needless to say, I had my work cut out for me.

The race shot out in the aforementioned pack over the course that was relentless with turns and hills. About a half-mile in, I was spit out of the back of the pack going up a long hill and was forced to play catchup the rest of the way. I hit the first mile right around 5:00 and was already about 10 seconds back in my one-man chase pack. Over the course of the next two miles, I gradually clawed my way back to pass Paul with a mile to go and tried my best to hammer home through the surprisingly humid morning. The last stretch finished on a false flat down the ATT and up near the ballpark. I could see David in the distance, but it was pretty evident that I had too much ground to make up.

I finished fifth, feeling aerobically fine but that my legs just would turn over as fast as I wanted them to, which is to be expected in my present bulk of marathon training. It would have been nice to win a little money, but it wasn't meant to be today. The time was pretty slow, but I mostly attribute that to the course profile. It'll be interesting to see if I'm under that 4-mile time through my first four at Cherry Blossom.

After a cool down with David, I went back out in the afternoon and felt completely fine, which was a pleasant surprise.