Name of the race: Dash to the Finish 5K
Where: Manhattan, New York
Date: Nov 3, 2018
Time: 8:45 am
Distance: 3.1 miles
Terrain: rolling hills
Entry fee: $40
Swag: Beanie
Post-race Food: Bag of pretzel, protein bar, and an apple
Time: 23:34
Performance: Overall: 1066/10864; Gender: 242/5746; Age (40-44): 25/794
Weather: 57 degrees, 100% humidity (because of light rain)
The Dash to the Finish 5K is a fun way for non-marathoners to partake in the TCS NYC Marathon fun without having to run a marathon. The last mile-ish of the course overlaps with the final mile-ish of the marathon, so you get to cross the same finish line as the marathoners the next day. I did this race two years ago and had a lot of fun because there was so much excitement in the air for Marathon Sunday.
The weather was great. It was nice and cool, overcast (love this for racing), and a light sprinkle of rain before the race. I was excited to put in a good race effort.
Dash to the Finish is a difficult race to race because of the massive congestion and bad GPS. GPS is always thrown off in Midtown because of the tall buildings. I never know exactly what I’m running. I’m pretty good about running based on effort once I look at my watch and see the pace. If I need to run X pace, I need to look at the watch to set it, and then I know what that effort feels like on that day. I can’t run a particular pace without a watch.
While running I kept my eye out for the mile markers so I could mentally calculate my pace. I was pretty pleased that at Mile 2, I came in about 15 mins, which meant a 7:30 pace. I was aiming for anything between 7:20 and 7:30, so this was all good.
Last mile of a 5K is all about pushing myself. Here is where I don’t know what happened. I mean, I know what happened – I ran slower, but I don’t know WHY I ran slower. I thought I was pushing myself to run hard (clearly not in retrospect). My race time was 23:34, which meant I really slowed down in the final 1.1.
After the race, I misread my Garmin, so I thought I ran 22:34, which would have been one of my fastest 5K, so I was really happy. Later that evening I saw the correct results, went to Garmin to relook, and then got a bit disappointed over my race.
Not all races are going to be good ones. This wasn’t, but it’s just one race in a long history of races.
A Fast Paced Life 
I wish there was a way to know pace without having to reply on GPS. Also, “I ran slower, but I don’t know WHY I ran slower” is pretty much the story of my life.
Being able to run a pace without relying on GPS is a superhero skill, IMO.
I would feel “better” about running slower if I felt off, or if the weather was bad or someting, but I legit have no excuse.
I ran that race first the first time, and that beanie is quite cozy.
Isn’t it nice! I love the hat.