This year's Run For The Kids was the same 15km course as last year, starting at the public transport friendly time of 9:10am for the blue runners (55 minutes to 75 minutes). The start time was also great because it meant we weren't standing around in the freezing cold at 7:00am like some other events.
In every other way the lead up to the race wasn't ideal, I picked up a bad calf injury the previous Sunday and couldn't do any running for the entire week. The night before the race I couldn't sleep until about midnight, then got woken up at 3:30am by the idiot next door with his loud car and never really got back to sleep again.
Still feeling a bit tired, we got to the starting area only at about 8:50am, but it wasn't too crowded so it was possible to line up within ten rows of the front. Twenty minutes didn't sound too bad of a wait, but they must have been running behind schedule from the 5km event as it was closer to 9:20am before we got to bunch up and wait for the countdown. Jason managed to sneak through to almost the front row as the crowd merged in from two directions, but I was stuck a lot further back.
From the start I went with the sprint overtake strategy that I hate doing, because I didn't want to be stuck in the crowd and lose too much time. There was one close call where I nearly ran out of footpath, but I had caught up to Jason as we entered the Domain Tunnel. We didn't go too hard through the tunnel, probably about 4:00/km pace, and some people going out hard were passing by.
Out the other end of the tunnel we hit the 3km marker, the first drinks station followed by the first uphill section. By now we were starting to overtake some people which was encouraging, and running at a comfortable 3:55km/pace. As we approached the Bolte Bridge near the 6km marker I started feeling a bit unwell. I wasn't sure if I just needed a bathroom break, or it was something I ate, or maybe both, but I tried to ignore it and kept going.
Up the bridge we did some more overtaking and managed to maintain close to 4:00/km despite the steep incline, and then picked up a bit of speed coming downhill on the other side to the 9km marker and next drinks station. Continuing through Docklands we hit the first (and only) timing point, it said 41 minutes for 10km but that clock starts when the elite runners begin, not the regular runners, so it's pretty much useless.
Passing Etihad Stadium next and I was continuing to fell worse, so I skipped the drinks station but was still just managing to keep up with Jason on the course. As we started up the final uphill section on Collins Street I determined that I couldn't keep running at full speed, either I had to stop for a bathroom break or continue on at reduced speed. So I dropped down from 3:55/km to about 4:05/km as Jason continued ahead, and planned to stop off at the next drinks and toilet station that was supposed to be close by at the 12km marker.
The drinks station actually didn't come until 13km, by that time I figured there wasn't really any point stopping so close to the finish line, so I just kept going at the same pace all the way to the 15km race finish. It was really frustrating not to be able to run at full speed, and also annoying being overtaken by many people in the last kilometre, but I still ended with a time of 58 minutes 39 seconds and 132nd overall which was below my goal of 60 minutes and a huge improvement on the 65 minutes I ran last year. I watched Jason slowly move ahead along Southbank and he finished in 57 minutes 59 seconds and 103rd overall. Strangely once I got over the finish line and started walking around I felt perfectly fine again.
So a mixed result this year, I was on track for a great time but was only let down by extraordinary factors at the end, top 100 would have been great. It should still be a promising lead in to the Puffing Billy Race which is just three weeks away.
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