I ate some peanut buttered and jellied toast and a cup of coffee to break my fast. In a moment I will hop into the running clothes I laid out last night. I’ll strap on my iPhone armband and Timex watch (I always have a backup plan) and walk down to the bus stop, which will eventually take me to the Oregon Convention Center, site of the Race for the Roses 5K.
This has always been the fastest course for me; in three previous outings, 2006, 2007 and 2009, I’ve averaged 28m 54s chip time, and logged my fastest-ever 5K, my personal best, in ’07: 27m 12s.
It would be awesome if I could make a personal best today, but if I think like that then the negative voice kicks in and tries to tell me no, I can’t.
Here’s the pushback for that fucking negative voice: I’ve already this year run two 5Ks under 31m, and both of those had more hills than the course today. And I’ve been training hard with a focus on speed for the last month and a half. My friend Shawn will be at todays race, and last time we ran together, we spurred each other to run just a bit faster than we each thought possible.
And I’m dedicating this race to my friend, Kevin, who is in the hospital and hoping to get better and go home soon.
With all those facts behind me, I bet I rock the course today. Watch and see!