It is the eve of the Buffalo Stampede 10-mile race here in Sacramento and time for me to formalize my goals. A blog I wrote earlier in the week reported my reservations about this race. I whined that I wasn't getting enough of a taper for the distance. I complained about a workout that didn't go so well. To top things off, a twisted ankle sustained last weekend on the Great Train Run, when a small child decided to go left when his mother told him "go right" as I passed making me dart left onto a slippery rock, created a hitch in my giddy-up that has made my right calf sore. Veteran marathoners know what I'm going through here. Everything is breaking down in the last few weeks before a big race. It would be funny if I weren't living it, I suppose.Nonetheless, I have a race to run. So, here are my three goals:
- Safe goal: My safe goal is to PR. Well, I hope that my tight calf doesn't cramp up on me so I can at least PR. The trick here is in deciding which PR to choose. Since this is a safe goal, I will go with the obvious choice which is to set a personal record for an actual 10-mile race. My current PR was set at the Buffalo Stampede last year and is 1:03:46. I have, however, broken that record in the last 10 miles of my 2008 CIM race and in the first 10 miles of both the Shamrock'n and SF half marathons this year. Those don't count, however.
- Reasonable goal: I believe I can run under 61 minutes for the distance. This is faster than I've ever raced 10 miles, so it is a fair goal.
- If stars align goal: My goal all along has been to break the 1 hour mark. This is actually a big deal, I think, on par with breaking the 18 minute mark in the 5k, the 1:20 barrier in the half marathon, and the 2:50 mark in the marathon.
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