Oktoberfest 5k and Franklin Park Mile Race recap (Sept 29 through Oct 5)

This week's plan: 35 miles
This week's actual: 42 miles

Key runs: Yasso 6x800 @  3:14; Oktoberfest 5k 20:34; Franklin Park Mile 5:49

Going into the philly marathon schedule, I had it in my head to run the Newport Marathon as a long training run.  With the Nahant 30k just two weeks prior to that, I was originally planning on doing a bit of a mini-taper this in-between week to recover a bit.  I was planning on maintaining the Yasso 800 mid-week track workout.  I finally clued into the fact that there is a really nice track just about 1.25 miles away from my work, so as long as I'm able to take a long lunch, I can run there to do my 800s.  Of course, for this session it was cold, windy and raining, but no matter!

After clearing that off my to-do list mid-week, I was content to skip the tempo run and for my long run on Saturday, I did 6 miles along the water in PJP and then 6 miles through Milton hills, but at a modest pace, which left me energy for Sunday's races.

A month or two ago, a good friend from work suggested that for her birthday, we should all do an Oktoberfest 5k (complete with post-run beer garden and pretzels!) but the conflict was that that was the same day as Forrest Hill Runners own Franklin Park Mile, so...short races, but a busy day on tired legs.

Everything went fine in the AM, I didn't run nearly as well as I had a few weeks earlier in Framingham, and finished about a minute off that PR.  I can't say I really held back much, I opened up at 6:20 for the first mile, but after that, I just didn't really have 5th gear available to me and hit 6:30 for my middle split before dropping back down to 6:20,  Realistically, my goal for this race was to break 20 minutes, which I came up a bit short of.  BUT, it was a good race, and it was a chance to break out my 2014 Germany jersey.

Approaching the finish line.  I beat this guy to the line.

Following a quick cool-down....beer time!

Not pictured: my beer, behind the birthday girl.

So.....after that, I headed home to rest for a bit before running over to Franklin Park to meet up with Forrest Hill people.  I could barely get going under 9 minute miles on the run over to FP though, so I didn't have high hopes for the Mile race. I ran the course once...slowly, before the women's heat started off the day.  My goal for this race, based on how my legs were feeling coming off Nahant, was to just break 6 minutes.  Please keep in mind, I've owned a Garmin watch since April 2013, and the fastest I've ever traveled any mile has been 6:01, which was the first mile of the Framingham 5k, so to break 6 minutes would be a nice accomplishment for me.

The race was actually loaded with sub 5 minute guys, so at the start I was a little overwhelmed and didn't fly off the starting line, but after 800m, we hit a small hill that I had an easier time with than 2 or 3 of the guys around me, so over the remaining 800, which is over varying terrain, I was able to pick up the pace and close ground on a guy that was 20-30m in front of me while we both finished strong.

After all that, it ended up being a busy, and faster week, than I was planning on having...especially the weekend before running a marathon.