Time to Paddy 5k 2023

Last Sunday I competed in my 2nd race of the year at the Time to Paddy 5k. The race was held at Big Creek State Park, on a course that I am very familiar with from training back in 2014 - 2019. The morning was cool and overcast with a chilly wind, but I warmed up fast once the race got going. I had been running well the week before the race which helped with my confidence going in. I have run 4 5k races since my record-breaking 2019 season with my fastest time being 41:18 at the Drake Relays Road Races 5k last year. My goal for this race was simple, beat that time. 

As my watch buzzed at the 1st mile marker, I looked down to see a time of 12:11 and was feeling pretty good. I was doubtful that I could keep up that pace, but it was a great start. After coming in with a 12:41 split for mile 2, I started to think that I might be able to finish in under 40 minutes, something I would have never believed before the race began. As I crossed the finish line, I looked at my watch and saw a time of 39:07. 

The feeling as I crossed the finish line was pure elation. That familiar feeling of having given everything that I had, leaving it all on the course, pulsed through me as I tried to catch my breath and made my way through the finish chute to retrieve my finishers medal. In addition to the medal, I was awarded a silver pin for finishing 2nd in my age group. While I was excited about my time, it is by no means a fast or competitive 5k so that award surprised me a little, but I will take it. 

I am still a very long way from where I once was, but for the 1st time since 2019, I'm actually beginning to feel like myself again. So much has changed in my life since I crossed that last finish line at the end of the Des Moines Marathon but that guy is still inside me. 

I have so much more that I want to share, but for now, I will end it here. A small success at the beginning of a long journey. Next up on my schedule is the Drake Relays Road Races 10k in April.