5th Avenue, New York City

Until today, I never really understood why 5th Avenue is so famous, but now I know. It must be because of the 5th Avenue Mile. No, not Museum Mile, I mean the fabulous race that the NYRR puts on every year.

Today was my first time running this race, and I had a blast. The races are run in many heats based on age group, from youngest to oldest for the amateurs, and the pros at the end.

My day started with a jog across the park to the race starting area. On the way, I ran part of the reservoir loop, and witnessed the gorgeous sight pictured on the left. The fountain is alway lovely, but today the wind was picking up the spray, and making it look like it was walking across the water.

My friend TH has two sons that were running, and I got there in time to see 16 year old SH tear up the course with a sub 5:30 time - 13th in his age group.

On my way back up toward the start, I ran into Flyer PD. He is my age, but more experienced, and oh yeah, much faster. When he found out it was my first mile race, he asked if I would like some tips. (Uh, YES!). First we tried to guess what might be a good goal, based on my best 5 mile race time. He suggested 6:15, maybe 6:00? Yeah, let's go with 6:00 since it's easy to divide into quarters. His advice?

1. Don't go out too fast. Everyone else will. Let them go. You are shooting for 1:30 at the first quarter.
2. Hold steady in the middle quarters, and when you get to the last quarter, don't start your kick yet -- it's way too soon. Save it for just the last couple of hundred meters.
   
3. Run hard all the way to the second timing mat. Assume they will mark your time from there. In a race this short, it can actually make a difference.
   

OK. Got it.

Unlike longer races, there were no starting mats. This meant that we would be timed from the starting gun to the time we crossed the finish. If it took a few seconds to get to the starting line, that time was lost.

I lined up about 8 "r0ws" back from the starting line. I would lose a couple of seconds, but going any further toward the front didn't seem appropriate. When the starting gun sounded there was mayhem for a few seconds, but then there was plenty of room to run. Remembering tip #1, I tried to keep my pace under control. Before I knew it, the first quarter had passed, and the clock read 1:25 - just a bit fast, especially given the 2 - 3 seconds it took to get to the starting line.

I dialed the pace back slightly, and tried to settle into a steady pace. I hit the halfway point at 3:05. Lost some time there, but I felt good, and that quarter was uphill.

I loved getting clock feedback every quarter instead of every mile, as it is in the longer races. I also loved the fact that the race was half over and the leaders were still in sight. I could even see the lead car.

The third quarter clock read 4:33 -- picked up a few seconds. One fast quarter to finish, and I might make it under 6:00! But wait! Tip #2 - don't kick yet! OK, OK, just pick it up a bit and stay under control.

Then the finish line was in sight, and I saw the 1500 meters sign about 100 meters up ahead. It was time. I gave it everything I had, and it felt great. The crowd got into it near the finish, and I heard a "go Flyer!" and even a "go John!". Usually, at this point in a race I've run for miles and I'm trying to pull some energy from some hidden source. But at this moment, I had run less than a mile, and the energy was right there. I was running as fast as I could -- plain and simple. I saw the finish line clock - 5:40 - could I get there? 5:45 - yes I could! As I passed under the clock it looked like a 5:54 or so. It was hard to be sure.

Ah, but what about Tip #3? Did I run hard to the second mat! Damn straight I did. It felt great. I wasn't sure about my official time, but I was sure it was under 6:00, and the race had been really fun. I saw PD, GW and a bunch of other Flyers right at the finish. That was different too. In a longer race, PD would be home having breakfast by the time I finished. Spirits were high. Spirits are high after the longer race too, but it's definitely a different vibe after a 1 mile run when folks are pumped up instead of exhausted. That's GW and PD in the pic -- can you see the speed?

Everyone seemed to want to see the results. They were posting them as they came out, but I've never known my team mates to be interested in seeing them. We know our own times, and we can check on line later to see our official time and those of our friends. Several people commented that at this race, the official times were often a few seconds slower than what you thought. Really? Still, what was the big deal? I was enjoying the hang though, so I decided to check my results too.

When they posted the results, there I was, 44th in my age group (of 167) in the glorious time of... 6:01??? What? Doh!! I wasn't upset though, I didn't really have my heart set on breaking 6:00. It was my first time racing the mile. I had no idea what time I could run. Now I have a time to beat. I couldn't be happier.

I stayed with my Flyer friends and watched some more races. Because the age groups ran separately, we got to see the best older runners winning their races. It was inspiring.

I jogged back across the park to go home. Later on, I check the NYRR website to see the stats. Of course, I started by looking up my own time, and there I was, 44th in my age group (of 167) in the glorious time of... 5:57!!!! YES!!! I KNEW IT!!! I KNEW IT!!! But like I said before, I didn't have my heart set on breaking 6:00...

Next year I am so going to destroy that time. Why is this race only once a year? They should have it once a month! What, someone else uses 5th Avenue besides runners? Really? Who?