World Masters in Lyon - my races

What a week!  Two races in three days with a super low and a super high.  First race was the 5,000.  My race was at 2:50 and the forecast was for a high of 100.  The heat coming off the track made it even hotter.  I didn't take a huge warm up, nobody did really.  I felt confident in my ability to handle the heat, after the two weeks of working on the bunkhouse in the heat.  I watched a lot of races and saw that a lot of people were dying about 2-3K in, so I knew I was going to take it out easier than I might otherwise do so I could try and stay strong throughout the race.   We were lined up on the track about 10 minutes before we started and you could feel the heat.  My warm ups felt good and I was ready to go. 

The gun went off and I started comfortably.  I was in fourth or fifth or something.  Started right off about 5 per K.  But after a bit I started to get some lifting paddles.  I wasn't sure why, just tried to focus on technique.  Kept strong in fourth place and saw that third was starting to come back to me.  With a K to go I was ready to charge after third when I got the dreaded red paddle.  I was pretty disappointed, but sometimes that's the way it goes.  It seems no matter how hard I work/how much I work on technique, there's just something about the way I look that makes judges take an extra glance at me.  I know, I know, pictures don't tell the whole picture (haha, get it...) but all the photos of me during that race show me solidly on the ground. 

So I had two options, I could sit there and feel sorry for myself or I could try to figure out what the judges thought they were seeing and see if I could fix it.  I talked with Dave and we figured that I was probably bringing my knees up a bit high and looked more "prancing pony" than I could've.  At a masters championship there aren't a ton of super-duper fast people, so anyone who is "fast" with a difference in technique could be easy prey. 

the day after my DQ we took a day trip to Paris, so that was a great way to get my mind off things.  Then Dave's race was Sunday.  I did some warm up, some mental technique practice and had Dave watch me walk.  He said I looked great, low to the ground, knees low and straight.  So I figured I'd done all I could for the next race.  Dave also commented, "Boy, it's good you can change your technique so easily."  I figure this is also a curse as once I get my technique sorted it's not so hard to get back to other techniques. 

Monday came and I got excited watching the upper age groups race.  So many women out there trying their hardest and being competitive.  I commented to Dave that in the men's races you could see a fair number of men just out for a stroll.  I didn't see that in the women's races.  You could see them really pushing and trying and competing!  It was great to see! 

I had the same game plan for the 10K, start off comfortable, see how the judging was going, and then push.  I was going to try to do every lap faster.  My race was women 35-49, so there were some awesome competitors in there.  Gun went off and I was third in my age group, however, the girl that came in second in the 5,000 who raced super smart was behind me and I knew she could really push and would race smart. 

About the second lap or so I got a knee paddle (much more like me) that turned into a red card, but no other judges seemed to be looking at me.  I was doing what I wanted and pushing each lap.  I felt fantastic!  I felt strong, I was picking people off like crazy.  Dave told me to go after one of the German ladies and he was with someone who said, oh, that's a tough one, she's a ways ahead.  I had her once I had come back from turning the corner! 

With one lap to go I was just flying along, feeling great!  Then bam, two lifting paddles right in a row.  I had a bit of a freak out so I backed way off.  I saw where fourth was, had maybe 30 seconds on her, but I knew that may not be enough.  As I turned the last corner, maybe 500 to go, she was closer but I thought still far enough.  As I came to the finish area, about 50 meters to go, there she was!  Right on my shoulder.  What a tough woman!  Wow!  The race before we had seen the chief judge red paddle someone on the final stretch, so I knew if I went for it and lifted I'd be out.  So I had to make a very fast decision:  do I stay safe and settle for fourth or go for it and maybe get DQed?  I decided to go for it.  So I took off and tried to keep my knees as low as possible and my feet as low as possible.  I got her by a second!  Then I headed over to the DQ board to make sure I made it through, lol.  And I did!  I'm so happy to know that I can sprint and kick!  I don't generally think of myself as kicker, and am happy that I can do that off 100 mile training!  

So I walked away with the bronze!  Not too bad for the training that I've done.  I felt like I could've kept that pace up for 30-40K, so that bodes well for my 50K in November.

Now I'll put my 100 mile hat on and see what damage I can do to that Centurion walk on Saturday!