Ocean Drive 10 Miler

I have been a little behind, so I'm using the weekend as a kind of catch for the races and places that I haven't written about.

Last weekend, March 26-27 was pretty busy.  I was in Camden for my Acceptance Orientation at Rutgers Law School on Saturday.  Then Sunday, I made for the coast to run in the Ocean Drive 10 Miler.  The race started in Cape May and finished up in North Wildwood.  There was a marathon run concurrently that ended in Sea Isle city.  It is a little early in the season for me to be in marathon shape, so I was content to run the 10 Miler.

The race began at 9am, so I had to leave the house around 6:15 to allow myself enough commute and preparation time.  It was a chilly morning.  Actually, it was flat out cold.  The wind was blowing in off of the ocean and it was flurrying when the gun sounded to start the race.  The race ran, pretty much, up the coast.  It headed inland through the marshes for a while and it finished on the boardwalk.

Cool shot of the beach taken close to the finish line.

I ran a time of 01:13:44, 7:22 minute mile.  I finished 30/526 overall and 7/34 in my age group (males 20-29).  I, again, was more than happy with this time.  I always start a race with the idea of an 8 minute mile in my head.  Lately, I have been running well under this pace.  Maybe I should start reconsidering my expectation of myself and up the ante a bit.  Then, there is always the idea of letting myself down.  An 8 minute mile is safe, but maybe I will have to shed my comfort zone and go for the gusto.