Impact A Hero 5k - 15:46 - 7.9 miles total

This was a nice race. I was really looking forward to the race after Luis told me he ran a 15:05 last year and the course was flat and fast and was an out and back. That made the decision to run this instead of the Astros 5k a no brainer.

I picked up my packet earlier in the week so when I arrived at the race I was well prepared and didn't have to wait in any lines. I quickly spotted Gerardo pre-race as usual and chatted a bit. Then I ran about a 1.5 mile warm up before the race. I spotted Luis and knew he would probably be the favorite to win. I also spotted Jose Lara and JP Machemehl. I figured Jose and JP would probably be my main competition. JP is a former sub 15 5k guy who is coming off an extended stress fracture injury, who clearly wasn't at his best. There were a few other guys out there so I really wasn't sure of what to expect in terms of competition. The extracurricular activities such as the motorcycle caravan, the soldiers, the rock climbing, all made for an impressive event.

Eventually we all lined up and the gun went off unexpectedly. After some hesitation we all took off. There was an army guy who took off sprinting the first .25 mile then he broke off and the race started to unfold. Luis was in the clear lead with a guy (I believe his name was Sam) off of his right shoulder. Right behind that guy was Jose. I wasn't very far behind Jose, and JP was trucking along side of me. I believe Luis, Sam, and Jose passed through the first mile in 4:57. JP and I passed through at 5:06

JP matched every move I had made up until shortly after mile 1. Then I made a strong clear move to catch up to Sam and Jose and JP let me go. By this time Luis had taken control and the battle was for second and third. I don't quite remember too clearly but I believe I passed Sam before the turnaround and then I was right behind Jose at about 1.5. Shortly after this I pass him, which he concedes, but he now is drafting off of me. At this time I'm starting to feel slightly uncomfortable earlier than normal in the race because of the heat(It was 76 degrees at the start). But it's not a big deal because I know I can maintain pace. I finish mile 2 at 5:03.

Mile 2 to 3 was uncomfortable but physically I was able to hold on and eventually increase my lead on Jose. I could see Luis in front of me but at this point in the race the heat had zapped any sort of speed I had left in me. I tried to go faster but my body just didn't have it. So I put myself in cruise mode and finished mile 3 in 5:04.

I was able to see Luis finish the race in front of me. Usually I drop a little speed in at the end of a 5k but this time I wasn't interested. I justed picked it up slightly and ended up running a 34 second last .12. I finished the race at 15:46 for second place. Luis finished at 15:23, Jose 16:03, Sam 16:3x, and JP 16:33.

Race

Mile 1	5:06
Mile	5:03
Mile	5:04
Total Average Pace	5:04

Total 15:46

This was a good race for me. I ended up missing my PR by only 3 seconds in clear worse conditions. Sean said this race was the equivalent of running a 15:30 Bellaire Trolley 5k. So that was encouraging to hear. Speaking of Sean he ended up running a steller 15:10 at the aforementioned Astros 5k. A stellar first race back for him.

I will be racing the Heights 5k next weekend. Hopefully I can keep the momentum going.