Brrridges to Recovery 5k (Race report)

This was the first race of the year for me. The Bridges to Recovery is a small 5k set up as a fund-raiser for Covenant House in the Ohio City area of Cleveland. I have been training for speed, so I was curious to see what I had .
We arrived with 45 minutes to spare. I signed up, hit the loo, and did my warm up. It was obvious that the winds were bringin' a chill from the west and that the warmer stuff was being pushed out. I was wishing I had some gloves, but aside from that I was ready to run hard around the 5k course that takes you over the Cuyahoga, past the Hard Rock Cafe, the Q, back over the flats and around the west side market. I really love this course for it's scenery. The bridges are deceptive and provide long inclines. My concern was the wind on the bridges coming off of Lake Erie.

A little past 9am the starting bell rang and we were off. The crowd was small, so I was able to settle in quickly and just focus on a hard pace. After the first mile I felt my pace was solid at about 7:30. The lead pack wasn't pulling to far ahead, so my ego remained healthy. After the aid station, we headed over the Lorain Carnegie bridge. The struggle to hold pace began as we crested the bridge. After turning onto w.25th I remained stable within the pack, but could never find a higher gear. I hit the finish in 23:54 for a 7:41 pace.

I worked hard and am regaining any lost speed from pre ironman form. I was happy with the effort. Hermes ran a good race and the residents at Covenant House were great volunteers. I have a fondness for this race and hope to return. This was my second.

Four weeks remain before the Marathon. All seems well.
5k's go by quick.