Al Gordon 4M
Pre-race
My first race! I was pretty nervous leading up to this one for a couple reasons:
- 4 miles was still an intimidating distance for me. I knew I could cover it, but wasn't confident.
- I was racing in a brand new pair of sneakers (Altra Paradigm 7). Probably dumb to pull out a new pair of shoes for a first-time experience, but ¯_(ツ)_/¯
- Big hill to start. People on Reddit talk about Battle Pass Hill a lot, and I had exclusively run on the flat parts of the West Side Highway until now.
Either way, the day came and I set out with my roommate. We ubered over since it was very early for both of us and Prospect Park is far. We got there with a lot of time to spare and spent our time stretching out in the starting area. It was chilly.
Getting started: Mile 1
The start line is a pretty cool experience, with lots of hype and music.
After starting out of Center Drive, we turned left onto Battle Pass Hill. The hill ended up being totally fine. The grade is gentler than people online make it out to be, it mostly lasts longer than you'd expect.
I was a little worried because my shins were burning near the top, which I assumed were because of my new shoes. Some research afterwards suggests this is due to running up a hill ¯_(ツ)/¯ ¯_(ツ)/¯.
The view from the top
We stopped to use the porta-potty. I recommend seeking one out before the race.
Cruising: Miles 2 and 3
I felt comfortable through these two miles, having warmed up and lightened my load. I can't remember much about mile two, but the third was fun. It was a nice downhill which helped with the effort, plus I finally noticed how much fun it is to run with lots of people.
Wrapping up: Mile 4
I developed a minor side-stitch in the final mile, but didn't think about it too much we were pretty much done. The course turned back onto Center Drive with a slight uphill to finish.
I managed a nice sprint to finish, which was gratifying.
The view from the bottom
Afterwards, we got some coffee. I left feeling pretty jazzed about doing races in general.