Harvard Pilgrim 10k Race Report

July 4th I decided to do a 10k.  This 10k was the inaugural Harvard Pilgrim race held at Gillette Stadium, home of the Patriots.  According to the race website, they were hoping to draw up to 10,000 runners.  So I was looking forward to running in a large race and trying to improve on the time of my only other 10k at Rev3.  The course was also designed to be flat and fast with a finish on the 50 yard line inside the stadium.

 

While they only drew about 3000 runners, it was still a large field.  Anticipating a bit of mayhem, I went over and picked up my number when registration opened and then went back home for awhile until it was closer to race time.  Once again both my parent’s came along for some support.  Temperatures at race time were 80 degrees and humid.  Here’s a shot of dad and I outside the stadium.

I started about 1/3 of the way through the field, in with the 8:00-9:00/mile crowd.  With a good day, I was hoping for around 54:00.  My mom got this great shot at the start.  The guy in orange was the eventual winner, and the 2 guys to his left rounded out the podium.

The race started with a loop around the parking lot roads, before heading out to the Foxboro town common and back.

The first 3.75 miles were going great.  In fact, I needed to dial my pace back in the beginning because I was running fast – faster then I thought I could maintain to the finish.  Mile 1 went by in 7:56, Mile 2 in 8:33 and Mile 3 in 8:39.  This included the only real hill of the day between Mile 1 and 1.5, nothing more then a gentle riser.

 

Then at mile 3.75 it all started coming undone.  I very quickly developed some severe cramps; much worse and much longer lasting then anything I had previously experienced in any race or in training.  It quickly got to a point where not only could I not run, but I couldn’t walk (see the huge spike in pace below).  As soon as I could, I got moving and tried to run but the cramp immediately returned.  I was getting pretty resigned to a disastrous race, maybe even just walking it in.  But after the 5th try of running, I could literally feel the cramp come undone.  At this point I had been moving slowly for the better part of a mile.  So mile 4 went by in 9:49 and mile 5 in 10:58. 

 

By this point, I was at the 4.75 mile mark and I knew my hope for a 54 minute time was gone but I still wanted to push for the best time I could.  As you can see below, I got back into the same pre-cramp rhythm, although I didn’t push my luck with any big end of race surges.  Mile 6 was 8:26 and the last 1/4 mile was at 7:53 pace.

The finale was great.  They had you enter the stadium through the tunnel and run out onto the field through the inflatable Patriots helmet and then dash to the 50 yard line, while putting your picture up on the jumbotron.  Your cheering section was allowed to sit in the lower level of the stadium.  Needless to say it was pretty cool to race across the field with a bunch of spectators watching.  Here are some shots on the field.

 

My finish time was 56:30, an average of 9:06 pace.  This was 2.5 minutes faster then Rev3.  Obviously I was hoping for faster given that it was a stand alone race, it was flat, and it wasn’t after swimming and biking.  But I was happy to finish pretty well after a debilitating cramp and I showed signs of better pace for this distance. 

 

I ended up 1008/2967 (top 33%) overall and 104/209 (top 49%) in my age group of M30-34.