AJC Peachtree Road Race 2016 Finish Line
Well I have my first Peachtree Road Race in the books now. When I signed up for this race I was thinking I’m crazy for running in a race on July the 4th in Georgia and the end results haven’t changed my mind either. It was extremely warm. I didn’t think to look up the temperature at my 8:10 start time but I know it had to be upper seventies and with the humidity feel like it was in the lower eighties. Conditions were Yellow when I started but twenty minutes later the conditions were changed to Red. Luckily, there was a breeze in some areas but even with that it was hot!
The first five kilometers went very well considering the heat. My 5K split time was 34:26 which comes out to an 11:02 per mile pace. My goal at start time was to finish under 1:08:00. Not even close to a PR time but with the heat and the huge crowd of almost 57,000 runners I would be extremely happy with anything under 68 minutes. The 5K split time put me pretty close to accomplishing that goal.
The fourth mile was the beginning of the hills. The first big hill is nicknamed “Cardiac Hill” and it was challenging but I’ve had worse to deal with during my training runs. With the heat though it was brutal! My body temperature was rising quickly and I started to slow down quite a bit. I finished the fourth mile with a split of 12:42! When I got to the mile four marker I had to change from a slow run to a fast walk. At the next water station I dumped two cups of water over my head to cool off. I continued to alternate from walking to running throughout the fifth mile. The mile five split time was 13:59! Uck! No way to finish in under 68 minutes now.
By the mile five marker I was feeling better and started to run to the finish. We got to a section that was shaded by tall buildings and had a nice breeze running through it that help too. I completed the last 1.2 miles at very close to an 11:00 per mile pace.
Race Results
On the bright side, even with an 1:14:44 finish time I placed slightly better than middle of the pack for the overall and my age group. No matter what, you’ve got to find something to be happy about.
I’m glad I did it. Now I can say I’ve ran in the world’s largest 10K road race. Will I do it again? I don’t know yet. At the moment, I’d say no way. By the time signup for the 2017 race comes along I could change my mind so you just never know.
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