Santa Monica 5k (19:31)

Friday I ran 3 miles, yeah three miles up and down M-12. It is a half mile from 50th to 55th and I just kept running back and forth as it is the most level road near my house.

I tried to set up the best possible race day situation for my legs, basically by not running. I didn't run on Saturday but got all my yard work done and that afternoon we drove down to Santa Monica. My brother-in-law Jon and I had signed up for this race a few months ago, but since my calf injury I can honestly say I was not looking forward to it. I actually signed up for the 10k but decided in the last few weeks that I would drop down to the 5k. I didn't want to push my luck. Plus I haven't run farther than 6 miles in a month.

This morning Jon and I drove to the starting area. Andi stayed with all three boys at the hotel. Thanks Andi! The weather in Santa Monica was beautiful. I don't know why I was surprised, it is always beautiful in the morning (unless there is a storm). The temp was probably in the mid 50s. We got our bibs and chips and warmed up a bit. We were 40 minutes early, so we hung around the staring line for a while. I spotted a familiar face above the crowds. I knew it was a former NBA player but I couldn't place his name. Later with the help of Justin Patananan we determined it was Kenny Smith, formerly of the Houston Rockets! When it got closer to the start some of the elite runners ran by us and I spotted Jen Rhines and Alistair Cragg of the Mammoth Track Club. I asked them if they would take a picture with me and they agreed. They both ended up winning the 5k! There were also runners from McMillan Elite.




I decided I would start conservatively and see how my leg felt. When the race started there were lots of people passing me. I saw Sergio Reyes warming up for the 10k! I held back but my leg felt good so I picked up the pace and went through the mile in 6:30! I continued to pick up the pace, now passing a runner every few steps, and went through mile 2 at 6:05! I still didn't even have any tightness. I hoped it wasn't just race adrenaline. The course starts and ends at different locations and most of the race has a slight uphill grade to it, but you make the turn after the two mile mark and run back to the famous Santa Monica Pier. During the last mile the leaders were coming toward me. I had carried my camera in my right hand the entire race so I slowed down, pulled over, and took a pictures of Alistair (13:54) and Jen (16:00) as they were finishing. Then I made the turn and picked up the pace again toward the finish line. At one point I looked down and my garmin said 5:34 pace! My official finishing time was 19:31 (6:18 pace). I did a little cool down to make sure my calf didn't tighten up too bad after the race. My brother-in-law ran 30:25, bettering his time from the Newhall 5k in July. It is a very competitive race with 78 runners under 20 minutes! See results here.

We stuck around to see Sergio place 3rd in the 10k with a time of 29:11! We found his wife Aimee and cheered him in. Afterward he told us it was a fast race considering it was a minute faster than when he won the race in 2007. Justin Patananan, of Palmdale, was 16th in 31:41 (also a course best). He said he has been dealing with some plantar fasciitis that has made his training inconsistent. 10k results here.




My leg is a little tight tonight but not too bad considering what I put it through today. We had a great weekend in Santa Monica. After the race we took the boys to the beach and also found a great park!