{"id":1081,"date":"2025-02-25T13:07:32","date_gmt":"2025-02-25T13:07:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/racereportblog.com\/?p=1081"},"modified":"2025-03-04T01:01:19","modified_gmt":"2025-03-04T01:01:19","slug":"fairfield-20k-feb-23-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racereportblog.com\/?p=1081","title":{"rendered":"Fairfield 20K – Feb. 23, 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Back to blogging! This was the third of the 4-part \u201cBoston Buildup\u201d series:\u00a0\u00a0Rowayton 10K on January 19; Ridgefield 15K on January 26; and this 20K was delayed twice because of fresh snow\/ice. My results had been satisfactory but inconsistent:\u00a0\u00a050:10 for the 10K (8:05 min\/mile); but 1:20 for the 15k (8:43 min\/mile).\u00a0\u00a0The latter hadn\u2019t been approached with a sufficient mindset: more of \u201cI guess I\u2019ll do this because I signed up for it\u201d rather than \u201cLet\u2019s go! It\u2019s time to race! Let me off the leash!\u201d\u00a0 And it didn\u2019t help to run 15k in trail shoes when it really wasn\u2019t that icy\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
This bib has travelled on the 10k, 15k and 20k races of this series \u2014 will it endure next week\u2019s 25k?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Today was somewhat in between.\u00a0I had tweaked my back swinging kettle bells two days earlier (need to stay focussed and respect the weight!).\u00a0\u00a0And I had a gig the night before so didn\u2019t get to bed until 11:30 before getting up at 6:30, to dress, eat, and drive to arrive by 8:30 a.m. for a 9 a.m start. Still, 7 hours sleep is pretty good for a race day, back felt a little wonky but responded well to squats and other stretches.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beautiful day, sunny and 32 degrees. Chatted with the outgoing Rob, 35ish guy who parked his jeep two cars away, who advised that I would \u201croast\u201d in a thermal shirt plus long sleeve zip up shirt (he was right, so I swapped my recovery t-shirt for the outer layer). At starting line, Yellow Tank-Top Guy was joking with his friends; Gray Pony-Tailed Guy said that there were some strong runners in my age group including \u201cPaul, that guy in the pink hat? He\u2019s wicked fast.\u201d  And young Make-a-Wish Tanktop Guy scoffed at my wearing gloves\u2026 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

New race strategy:  rather than planning the milestones by speed or heart rate, I relied on my Relative Perceived Exertion (RPE, on a scale of 1 to 10):  First 5 mile, feel easy (RPE 4-6), then \u2026 up the pace (to RPE 6-7) for Miles 6-10. Crank up for Miles 10-11 (RPE 7-8). Then, pull out the stops for the \u201clast mile\u201d (RPE 8-10)! Thank you, Coach Steve (www.triendeavors.com)!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Okay, this doesn\u2019t sound very different from \u201cstart slow and easy and get faster in second half\u201d but it felt very different.  First, it let me ignore the watch (except to see the mileage).  Second, RPE 4-6 was more specific than \u201ctake it easy,\u201d gave me permission to really ease into it, and to stay in control based on feeling (rather than wanting\u2026) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And third, chatting in the first few miles with friendly strangers was a lot more fun than revving up for 12.4 miles on my own.  27-year old Alex said he was training for his first marathon, having done a half marathon in 1:21 (!!). So when he took off, I took solace that I could still see him in the distance \u2014 1\/4 mile away, then 1\/2 mile away, then gone, baby, gone. (He finished 7th overall.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Screenshot<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Kept dialing into RPE 4-6, accepting that rolling terrain made for more exertion but feeling solid and happy and satisfied with a comfortable gait.  A few hills, especially at Mile 5 (just as I cranked up to RPE 6-7), and at the crest I took my 45-minute nutrition.  With water stops only at Miles 3 and 10, it was good to have a water belt, but taking out the gel package broke my rhythm and I could feel my heart rate kick up. That\u2019s okay, this happened on practice runs, just dial back to RPE 6, get it under control and into my happy place.  Beautiful, sunny day, with snow on the trees, what\u2019s not to like?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mile 5.5 to the end of this \u201clollipop\u201d course (a loop where the beginning and end are the same) feels like mostly down hill, and I\u2019m loving it.\u00a0\u00a0The descents pound on my quads, which ache from riding indoors the day before, but knees are okay, and the woman in purple I had passed now passes me and is gone over the horizon\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mile 10 and time to crank it up.  Heavy guy catches up to me and i can hear his heavy foot falls and panting; I\u2019m not going to slow down. Yellow Tank-Top is ahead, with this weird, wrestler\u2019s running style; I\u2019m going to catch him.  Make-A-Wish Tanktop is ahead as well,  and somehow I pass him (though he sticks with me, annoyingly noting \u201cjust 2 1\/2 miles to go!\u201d Shut up, can\u2019t you see I\u2019m running?) And up ahead, I think it\u2019s Paul, who\u2019s reportedly Wicked Fast, and I pass him! (Alas, later turns out that this guy was \u201cSteve\u201d\u2026). There IS something left in the tank, and there\u2019s the parking lot, cones directing me around a short turn and I\u2019m THERE!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And I\u2019m there 2 1\/2 minutes FASTER than last year: 2:42:17 (=8:14 min\/mile)!\u00a0\u00a0Coach Steve had predicted (based on my lackluster 15k) that I\u2019d do 2:49! 6\/12 for AG (must be the same 5 guys who\u2019ve been ahead at the 10k and 15K), 38\/73 for men, 53\/121 OA. Among runners who have qualified for Boston? Works for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Other races give out medals at the finish line. This one gives out bagels. \u201cNow I have everything\u2026\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On to the Silvermines 25k next week!<\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Back to blogging! This was the third of the 4-part \u201cBoston Buildup\u201d series:\u00a0\u00a0Rowayton 10K on January 19; Ridgefield 15K on January 26; and this 20K was delayed twice because of fresh snow\/ice. My results had been satisfactory but inconsistent:\u00a0\u00a050:10 for the 10K (8:05 min\/mile); but 1:20 for the 15k (8:43 min\/mile).\u00a0\u00a0The latter hadn\u2019t been approached […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1082,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1081","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2025-race-reports"],"yoast_head":"\nFairfield 20K - Feb. 23, 2025 - Race Report Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/racereportblog.com\/?p=1081\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Fairfield 20K - Feb. 23, 2025 - Race Report Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Back to blogging! This was the third of the 4-part \u201cBoston Buildup\u201d series:\u00a0\u00a0Rowayton 10K on January 19; Ridgefield 15K on January 26; and this 20K was delayed twice because of fresh snow\/ice. 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