Bix report

Last weekend I was out in Iowa to visit my parents, and while there I competed in the Quad City Times Bix 7 road race. Every year my goal is to break 50 minutes, and even though I missed it this year, I think I still ran well and am pleased with my performance. I woke up Saturday morning to thunder and lightning and rain, and that continued right on through the race. I was actually a little chilly standing on the starting line. My first mile, including the Brady Street hill, was 7:58, and my second mile (a long downhill on Kirkwood) was 6:47. On the way back I had to run up Kirkwood, and that was the most difficult part of the race, as it is every year. I managed to hold a decent pace over that stretch, and then my last mile, including the Brady Street downhill, was 6:47. I finished with an official time of 51:26, which was good enough to place in the 800s out of 13,000 people. The rain really helped to cool things off, and I was really glad for it -- in spite of being chilly at the post-race party and getting chafed from my wet shorts.