Race Recap: Steamboat Classic 4 mile

Setting goals can be scary.
Smashing them is so darn fun!

I'll never win a race, but I always aim to improve my own personal standings and performance.  I thrive off numbers.  I always review my past racestats and overly abuse the 'pace calculator' app on my iPhone.  I just can't help it.  So in preparing for this year's Steamboat, I pulled up my 2011 stats...

Time 35:55 (8:59 pace).
Ranked 1095 overall, 29 in my age group

Almost instantly, I set my goals for the 2012 Steamboat to run the 4 miles under 35 minutes, rank under 1000 overall and make the top 25 in my division.

Hubby and I arrived on event grounds around 6:15 am.  I met up with the Sole Sisters for our group photo, and then warmed up as I jogged back to the car with the camera.  After just one mile, I could tell it was going to be a hot one.  The air was sticky and temps were already over 70 degrees with a bright blazing sun overhead.

 Sole Sisters before the race!

I got into the lineup a little late and before I knew it the action started with a silent flag drop.  With over 5000 runners lined up (no corrals), this race is known to have a congested start.  Surprisingly, I had a pretty smooth start and made it around that dreaded first right turn without a problem.  My legs felt good and I tried to keep my pace just outside my comfort zone. I wanted every mile to be sub-9 pace.

The course is really flat, essentially an L-shaped out and back, with a nice downhill at the end.  The turnaround area is always fun in a local race where you know a lot of people. I was pretty focused, but loved hearing the "Go Jess" calls from fellow runners. Out of breath, all I could muster was a hand wave back. On the way back to downtown, crowds were very encouraging and the sprinklers delightful.  As I cruised back into downtown, I couldn't believe it was over already. I kicked into high gear down the final chute and was oddly disappointed with how much gas I had left.  Oh-well, lesson learned. 

Mile 1 - 8:31

Mile 2 - 8:45

Mile 3 - 8:39

Mile 4 - 8:35

Finish: 34:33 (8:38 pace)

This is my fastest avg pace ever in a race!

#936 out of 3311 overall

#25 out of 236 in my Age Group

* ALL GOALS MET! *

This is my my stopwatch time.  For some reason, Steamboat and I don't seem to have a good relationship over the years - my time is always messed up. This year was no exception. For some reason, my chip didn't register when I crossed the start line (but the finish recorded thankfully!).  So all the race has available is my gun time, no accurate chip time. Boo.

The best part of Steamboat is the post-party in Riverfront Park.  It was toasty and packed this year, but we stayed until the free beer quit - roughly 10am, so we got a good 2.5 hours of recovery beer! Woo-Hoo! 

Serious celebrating here!

 My friend Delisa finished 11th overall with a time of 24:16.  She's amazing like that.

And I got to reunite with my Ragnar Ultra Chicks!