Wishin' and Hopin' and Thinkin' and Prayin'...

...Plannin' and dreamin' each night

No, I am not thinking about a guy (other than my hubby).  Rather, I am dreaming about race day.  It is now less than a week away, and I am excited.  I want to run as much as I can just to get my jitters out!

I signed up for the 10k with the goal of finishing in 70 minutes or less.  Two weeks ago I was able to run a 10k in 68 minutes.  Two DAYS ago I finished one in 67 minutes.  My new goal is to finish in under 66 minutes.  Given that the course is flatter than what I've been running, and I'll have adrenaline coursing through my veins from all the excitement of it all, I think this is a definite possibility.  HOWEVER, a friend / trainer of mine as proposed a new goal. 

He and his girlfriend are running in the wave just before mine.  It starts 3 minutes before mine does, and the estimated finishing time is 60-65 minutes.  He suggested that my goal be two-fold.  First, catch up to him and his girlfriend.  Second, keep up and finish with them.  I am tempted to make this my official goal, but I have one big hesitation.

I have no doubts that if I started with them I'd be able to finish with them.  I always run faster in a race than I do in training, and I think I'd be able to achieve this with a bit of effort.  My fear is that I will waste all my energy in trying to catch up to them.  I want to start off slow and finish strong, not the other way around.  Still, though, I think I can use them as some extra motivation.

I know now on race day I will have two things driving me forward.

1) I hate it when people pass me.  This is my awesome competitive nature, and while I'm OK with people passing at the start, once we're in the flow I will push myself much harder just so I stay ahead of someone.  I'm OK with not being first, but I sure as hell won't allow myself to be last...not even in my wave.

2)  I have someone to see!  While I'm OK with not catching up to my friends, how cool would it be if I did?  It's not an official goal, but I know I'll run faster with them in mind.

For now, though, I'm just focusing on training runs and a healthy diet (something made harder after the fondue fest of this weekend).