Background

In April I received an email at work informing me that the company would sponsor 10 people who registered for the Cotton Row 10km or 5km race to take place on Memorial Day (May 25). At the time I was running off and on, only covering maybe 10 miles a week. the moment I received that email I decided that it was time I get serious about training and run a 10k (6.25 miles). I’ve run a handful of 5k’s in the past, but had never attempted a 10k. My latest attempt to see what I can do in a mile run was about 7:40 and I struggled to make that, I was exhausted and gasping for air at the end of that run in. My personal record (PR) in a timed mile run is 5:40 in the summer of 2001. This was after a track season that saw me set a 400m (1/4 mile) PR of 49.75 and win a state championship with my 4x400m relay team in 3:18.67. I wasn’t happy with having run a 7:40 mile as my current best, but it gave me a place to start and an idea of where I was fitness-wise.

Cotton Row 10k Course

Here is a map of the Cotton Row courses (10k & 5k):

Source: Huntsville Track Club Cotton Row Race event page. Original PDF map.

The map above shows the course and the elevation profile. Mile three presents a very steep climb of 98 feet in a very short distance. This is the hill that I heard about a lot getting ready for this race. It seemed that people feared this hill more than the actual distance itself. :) One thing to notice though is the nice descent after the steep climb. Effectively the hard part is done when you have covered half the distance. If I could relax and let the hill pull me down for the second half of the race I could still have some gas left to finish the race strong.

Training

Knowing that I would need to commit to a training regime that would increase my fitness level quickly and safely I searched the internet and settled on a Runner’s World 10k training plan. With a plan in place and firm deadline set by signing up and registering for the 10k I was set to get running. From the training plan I selected to train at the intermediate training level. I felt that was a good place for me as I had been running for a while, just not consistently, I felt my beginning fitness level was high enough, and I have trained for competitive racing for track in high school and college so I had an idea of what to expect physically and mentally.

The intermediate plan starts at 24 miles for the first week and builds up to 31 miles in week 5 before tapering off the week before the race. The date being April ??, I only had four and a half weeks to train.

Knowing that at the time I could run a mile in 7:40 all out and with that training plan set I could run faster for the race, my goal was set for the 10k at or below 50 minutes. That works out to a pace of 8 minutes per mile (5 min/km) or a maintained speed of 7.5 mph (12 km/h). Having the goal set helped me to focus on what needed to be done rather than worrying about failure or what could go wrong along the way. This way my goal and no one else’s. That was vital for me to remember as I am very competitive about running or any feat of fitness. If I didn’t keep my goal in mind and pay attention to how my body felt I would very likely push myself too hard and injure myself during training or at the race.

Having the goal set helped me to focus on what needed to be done rather than worrying about failure or what could go wrong along the way.…

One advantage I did have was that my typical training course included a downhill close to the beginning, meaning that it was uphill at the end of my run. This helped my training as it would push me to run uphill at the end of my training runs when I would be fatigued. For gear I used two pairs of Asiscs Gel-Nimbus 10 shoes and a Garmin Forerunner 305 to track my heart race and speed during my runs.

Pre-Race Course Run

One of the sponsors of the race, Fleet Feet Sports, held training runs for the 10k and 5k Cotton Row courses every Saturday. I wanted to run the course at least once before the race to get the feel of the terrain and see how I would fair. I met a new friend on May 16 and ran a 52:09 comfortably. The friend I ran with was shooting for a 40 minute or less race time so a 52 on the course was easy for him. It was a plus for me as it helped to push me close to my goal time and gave me a taste of the pace I would need to maintain on the course. The hill at mile 3 proved to be one of the most challenging aspects of the course. We were able to push ourselves up the hill without walking.

Race Strategy

My strategy for the hill at mile three was to power up it as much I could for race day. Walking wasn’t an option for me and walking meant the hill would last longer and be able to take more of a toll on me mentally. I wanted to power up the hill even if I had to sprint up it. The goal was to lose as little time as possible on the hill prove to myself that I could do run up the hill and finish the race well.

Race Day Reaction

Overall the race went well meeting my goal of running under 50 minutes with an official time of 49:01. Able to sprint up the hill mid-course which felt great considering how steep it is. Also, passed a lot of people at this point as many walked this part of the course. Sprinting up the hill here really took a toll (as can be seen from my heart rate that hit 202 bpm) and tried to relax as much as possible afterward and let the downhill part of the course work for me. Happy with being able to pick up the pace towards the later part of the race.

Performance Data

Mile Splits:

1. 7:53
2. 8:00
3. 8:27
4. 8:24
5. 7:37
6. 7:24
7. 1:13 – last ~1/4 mile