This weekend a few of the guys on the UDTF club team went up to the Armory to race, among other things, a DMR. I ran the anchor leg and wasn't sure what to expect since I haven't run a serious or 1500 since last March. I figured I would be in the 4:10 - 4:15 range, since last year I ran 4:19 on a flat track around this time. The meet was running about 50 minutes behind when we went to warm up(typical of an indoor meet) but once we got back it was somehow almost back on time and we had less than 10 minutes to race time! We got checked in and evidently the sped up schedule caught all the other teams off guard too, based on the general panic in the bullpen.
I'm not sure where in the race I got the stick, but I knew that Clemson, who was dominating the race, was close to lapping us so I got out hard and tried to get up with a pack to run with. I knew I was going way too fast but I figured once I caught people I'd back off (first 400 = 60). I ended up getting somewhat stuck behind people who were running a little slower than I wanted to at that stage of the race, but I didn't want to have to go out into lane 3 multiple times to get around those groups of guys. The net result of my lollygagging was 64/65 for the middle 400's. Going into the last 400 I heard the bell (for Clemson who was right on me) which inspired me to start kicking with two laps to go. I actually would have liked to kick from farther out, since I had slowed down enough by that point that I felt recovered from the fast start. Too bad I am a novice at these short indoor races and always react a little too late to things like that. I managed to hold off Clemson and finish my leg with a good 61, and a final (split)time of 4:11.
Considering the crazy splits and that even during the race I felt like I had a ton of strength in reserve and just couldn't get around people, I am sure that I can run much faster in a better race. I felt great all day, even on the cooldown. Evened out, those splits probably would come out to a 4:08-9 and I really think I can run even faster. Next week at the Armory I'm running another mile and I hope I can break 4:10 for the first time!
This race has convinced me, along with Coach's insistence, that I can run a good 1500m this spring if I get in a fast field. I haven't even touched anything close to mile pace in a serious workout, so hopefully when I get some specific mile work under my belt I'll feel much more comfortable in a fast race. Doing some speedwork at that pace should also help the beginning of a fast 5k feel manageable, something I have always struggled with. I am really looking forward to the coming weeks of training and the upcoming spring season!
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