Race Report: Bermuda 10K

This morning, I race-walked the Bermuda 10K.  This was the second race of the Bermuda Triangle Challenge.  It was a tough turnaround after doing an all-out mile last night.

The race started at 9:00.  The shuttle leaving my resort left at 7:30, so I didn’t have to get up too early, but my body still isn’t used to this time zone.  I didn’t eat any breakfast.  I didn’t feel like I needed any food for such a short race, but I could have used some caffeine.

When I got up, it was 69 degrees.  I was surprised how little variation I’ve seen in temperature.  How hot or cold it feels depends mostly on whether it’s windy.

We were dropped off at the entrance to the National Sports Centre in Devonshire Parish.  On the way in, we walked by a monument that listed the names of athletes who have represented Bermuda in the Olympics.  I assume this was their training center, as there was a track, a soccer field, and swimming lanes.  Before the race started, we sat in the grandstands overlooking the track.  We were on high ground, and I could really feel the wind.

About 30 minutes before the race, I made a bathroom stop, dropped off my gear bag, and started walking to the starting line, which was just outside the sports centre.  The field included both runners and walkers.  I assumed I would be slower than most of the runners, but faster than all of the other walkers, as I was probably the only one race-walking.  Accordingly, I lined up somewhere in the middle of the field.

The course was a single loop.  After leaving the sports centre, we followed Middle Road to Flatts Village, and then followed North Shore Road back to the National Sports Centre, where we finished on a track.  I heard rumors it was hilly, but I never looked at an elevation profile.

My previous best time for walking 10K was 1:08:31.  That wasn’t in a race, but it’s an average pace of 11:01 per mile.  I was hoping to improve on that today.

When the race started, I had a hard time gauging how fast I was going.  My fast mile last night probably distorted my sense of pace.  The 10K had a downhill start, which also distorted my sense of pace.  I aimed for an effort that was somewhere between how I start a marathon and how I started the Front Street Mile.

Although the first mile was mostly downhill, there were a couple spots where it briefly turned uphill.  The first time I started up a hill, I quickly felt out of breath.  It was similar to how I felt during the Front Street Mile.  That told me I was starting too fast, so I backed off a little in my effort.

I finished the first mile in 10:21.  That was much faster than I expected, but it was a downhill mile.  At first, the second mile was also downhill.  I was probably halfway through that mile before having to go uphill again.  Then I reached the first long and tough hill.  I knew I would slow down, but I expected the runners around me to slow down more.  I told myself I should be working hard enough to pass a few of them.

Just before the end of a long hill, I reached the end of the second mile.  I slowed to 10:50, but that was still faster than my PR pace.  The question was, “Could I sustain this effort?”

Almost immediately after leaving the National Sports Centre, I stopped feeling the wind.  Instead, I started to notice the high humidity.  I was getting sweaty, but I only had 4.2 miles to go.

Early in the third mile, I reached the first of two aid stations.  They had both water and Gatorade.  I didn’t care which one I got.  I just wanted something to drink.  I reached in, grabbed a cup, stepped around the runners, and drank it without slowing down.  In a race like this, I couldn’t afford to lose time at aid stations.

Mile three was rolling.  There were even a few relatively flat sections, where I could get into a consistent rhythm.  I sped up to 10:36.  I started to get more confident that I could sustain my fast pace.  There wasn’t a 5K marker, but extrapolating from my three mile split, I probably reached halfway in about 32:51.

We were now going through Flatts Village, so I saw more homes.  In general, this course showcased the terrain of the northeast corner of the island as well as some beautiful homes.  We had good crowd support throughout the race.  Everyone comes out to support the race.

As a race-walker, I’m somewhat of a novelty, so people noticed me.  I heard a lot of comments from the crowd about how fast I was walking.  Once, I heard someone say, “He was race-walking last night too.”  I also got those comments from other runners. “You’re the race-walker.  I saw you last night.”

Early in the fourth mile, we came alongside the water’s edge.  I knew we were at the lowest elevation on the course, so we would have to climb to get back to where we started.  As I began a small hill, I passed a runner.  Farther ahead, there was a steeper hill, and most of the runners were taking walking breaks.  I passed them all.  The next time the road leveled off, a group of runners passed me.  I dug deeper to stay with them.  I expected runners to pass me where it was downhill, but I needed to hold my position where it was flat.

Mile four had a slight uphill trend, but I nevertheless sped up to 10:20.  At this point, I knew I should be able to set a PR.  The only thing that could stop me was a long steep hill that slowed me substantially.  That was still a possibility. There was a lot of downhill in the first two miles. I braced myself for an equal amount of uphill in the last two.  It turned out not to be as bad as I feared.

Mile five had an uphill trend, but none of it was steep.  Going uphill, I once again passed the group of runners I had passed early in mile four.  They never passed me again.  Whenever the road leveled off, I fought like mad to keep up with the runners around me.  Going uphill, I passed the walkers and tried hard to also pass a few of the runners.  I couldn’t quite pass any of them.

I slowed a little in that mile, but still walked it in 10:40.  I had a huge cushion going into the last mile, but I was still waiting for the other shoe to drop.  Would it be one long steep hill?  Almost immediately, the road turned uphill.  I worked hard.  My gait changed from short rapid strides to long powerful strides.  I was really working my arms.  I knew the hill was slowing me down, but I didn’t know how much.

The road leveled off again.  That was a huge relief. I switched back to a rapid cadence.  I heard one of the runners in front of me ask a spectator if there were more big hills.  She said there was a slight incline coming up later, but it wasn’t as bad.  You never know if spectators are giving you good information or painting a rosy picture.  This one was giving us accurate information.

We made a left turn onto the road that would lead us back to the National Sports Centre.  The grade was level.  Ahead of me, I could see runners making another left turn.  I recognized the road.  This was where our bus turned before dropping us off this morning.  I knew it was uphill, but I didn’t think it was too far.

I fought my way up the hill.  Then I discovered it was a “false summit.”  The road leveled off briefly before turning uphill again.  The last part was steeper, and I didn’t know how much longer I could keep up my effort.  Just before the top, I reach the six mile mark.  That was the toughest mile, but I was still faster than 11 minutes.  Now I just had to finish.  A PR was guaranteed.  We had a steep downhill before turning to enter the sports centre.  Then I saw the entrance to the track.  As I got onto the track, I had only about 100 meters to go, and I had no trouble maintaining my pace.

I finished in 1:05:28.  That’s a walking PR by more than three minutes.  A volunteer at the finish line read my bib number, so another could write it down.  Then she asked, “Are you the race-walker?”

The finisher medal for the Bermuda 10K was similar to the medal for the Front Street Mile.  They both had the same flowers at the top.  Instead of downtown Hamilton landmarks, this one features the grandstand and track.

If my estimate of my halfway split was correct, I had negative splits.  That's in spite of the first half being net downhill and the second half being net uphill.  Apparently, I didn't start too fast.  I just underestimated how fast I could walk in a race as short as 5K.

Post-race food was sparse, but there was no shortage of beverages.  My favorite was a “ginger cola.”  It’s like a cross between Coke and ginger ale.  I also picked up a bottle of water to drink later.

After retrieving my gear bag, I bumped into some friends who were staying at the same resort.  A few of us walked to Hamilton, which was about a mile away.  There, we ate lunch at an Irish pub and visited a few shops.  Then we took a bus back to the resort.

I’ll probably relax at the resort for the rest of the day.  This race took a lot out of me.  The marathon is tomorrow, but my goal race was the 10K.  Tomorrow, I plan to run, but I’m going to stay within my comfort zone.  Two down, one to go.

Race Statistics

Distance:  10 kilometers

Time:  1:05:28

Average Pace:  10:32 per mile (6:33 per kilometer)