Ten Mile Turkey Run - Sun. Nov. 26

Early start on my own to get to this one, all the way off inside 495. When I dreamed up this series of runs back in August, I think, I was guessing Marlboro was somewhere near Worcester. Oops. I left at about 6:50 a.m. after a shower and drinking gypsy cold cure - took the Pike and had a pretty decent drive, Google Maps printout in hand. It was a bit tricky once I got off 495 into the town, but only had to make one u-turn, and then there I was, at some country club/park, at about 8:20. A few other runners and a sponsor's tent (SmartWater, by Glaceau) - Ivan showed up very soon after, with Chris too. We did a mile or so warming up, and then it was time to go. Start was set for 9, but after instructions, etc. it was 9:10. The website and other runners were saying how tough and uphilly the course was, but this turned out to be bogus. Ivan and I both planned to run it safe; I was worried about my head cold (weather was very nice in fact, quite pleasant out of the wind, so I carried hat and gloves after the first mile or two). But the race started downhill, and I followed the leaders, not too fast; they left the pack early and I followed, in 5th place, just waiting for the big hill. But it didn't come, and I lost sight of the leaders after a few miles. Ran solo, I think, from about mile 2.5 to 7. No push or pull is a bit hard, but the digivice helped. Needed to pee after about 6 miles, which stopped me from getting water in last stretch. Bad planning, not helped by the fact that the start was quite a long way from the loos. Well, it wasn't a big factor. At just past mile 7 the hill started and two of the 4-5 strong high school team came up and by, very methodically. I attacked back briefly, but they were in good synch and a bit too strong. Kept them in sight up the hill, the one long serious hill (not so steep, in fact) and then they pulled away a bit in the last mile. They were less than a minute ahead at the end though. So I came in 7th, thus:

Time: 1:06:32
Speed: 9 mph
Distance: 10 miles (by track; 9.85 by digivice)

Comment: Lovely course for next year, now we know how it looks and works. Ivan, continuing his string of bad luck, got lost after about 5 miles, and added nearly three miles; he was not alone, but was following two other runners, and so they all have an asterisk next to their names on the CoolRunning results. I wasn't out of breath and wanted to warm down, so I ran back to hook up with Ivan -- backtracked over 1.5 miles, and then did the final stretch again in his wake. So we both ran half-marathon distance in the end!

I made a bit too fast a start, maybe, given my general condition; 5K was just under 20 minutes (which constitutes a PB I think)and I faded a bit at mile 6 and 7. Then came the hill. . . Still, very happy overall with 7th, out of 70 finishers I think. The winner (25 yrs) was a repeat course-record holder, and places 2 and 4 went to two rather pro South Americans who I recognise from other runs (33 and 50 respectively). I had two highschoolers before and after me, quite satisfying.