But still, that kind of pace could see me tick off one of my running goals - a sub 15 min Tan time trial.
My PB to date was an agonisingly close 15:00.66, in May last year before my hip started playing up and I lost the best part of six months. Was I in that sort of form again? There was only one way to find out, but I knew what it meant: pain.
This. Was. Going. To. Hurt.
I looked up my splits from last year:
3:45
3:59 (through halfway in 7:25)
4:03
3:14 (for 0.86k)
Even though the official distance is 3.827km, last year my Garmin showed 3.86k, although I stupidly didn’t take the best racing line. Over 3.86k, I worked out I need to be averaging 3:53. Pretty much 'interval pace', with no recovery jogs in between kms!
I toe the line. Go.
First km down, 3:46. 1 second slower than last year. Already on the limit, but 7 seconds up against the average 3:53 pace required.
But now my watch is telling me I'm doing ~4:30 pace up Anderson Street. Doubts are starting to creep in. I'm losing too much time.
I recover and I'm through half way in 7:26, again, one second slower than last year.
The 2nd km is 4:00. My buffer over the goal pace is gone.
For a fleeting moment I actually consider stopping. "I can't do this. I'm already slower than last year and I feel like crap. I'll try another day." "No, you won't!" comes back the response, and I keep going.
The one positive is I know it’s almost all downhill from here, but last year’s 3rd km was a shocker – a 4:03 despite the gradient.
No such problems this year. I pull out a 3:53 and I know I just need to beat that pace with the biggest downhill section ahead of me. Knowing I ran yesterday's fifth 1000m over pretty much the same section of the Tan, in 3:48, is a big boost.
I stick as tight as possible to the inside, any on-comers have to move over for me, I’m not moving for them. Meters could matter.
My watch is showing sub 3:50 pace with 500 to go, then sub 3:45 with 250 to go. I’ve got this. It’s weird but throughout the whole time trial, I don’t remember looking at the race time apart from halfway, it was all about the pace.
I cross, this time 3.84km showing, and more importantly, 14:42.16. I averaged 3:38 pace over the last 840m.
A sub 15 lap. Finally.
Tick.
[I'm not sure I could have done it without the strength I've built up as a result of the numerous training runs in the hills with the Dandy Trail Runners, so a big thanks to everyone from that group!]
