St. Patrick's Day Parade Run 5 Mile

The St. Pat's Day 5 Mile in St. Louis is a major regional race sporting over 13,000 registrants and showcasing many of the area's best runners.  For the first time, Steady State Running had two athletes competing in the same event although both at distinctly different points in training and season.  To say the event held the spectator's interest with an exciting finish would be an understatement.  

The course was much hillier than expected and strong headwinds kept the early pace controlled and timid.  The first mile saw a group of nearly 20 runners come through in a large pack at just over 5:05 mile pace.  The second mile of the race saw strong headwinds and long hill climbs, which led many of the more experienced distance runners to continue their current paths and simply follow the train.  This is where Darwin Price took control of the race and ran with a confidence that usually sees distance runners pay the price late in the race.  The pace per mile slowed until mile 3 of the race but the effort certainly increased.  Darwin continued to lead and I was one of the many who slowly began to fall behind.  A group of five put in a strong surge up a long hill just past two and three quarter miles and I found myself trying to cover the move but reacting too late.  The front five moved on as Darwin continued to lead and I found myself in the comfortable presence of Carter Snow another local distance runner with similar strengths of my own.  Our own race developed but the real race continued to unfold up front.  

The race really broke open just after 3 miles when last year's champion and arguably St. Louis' best long distance runner Brian Lyons began to push the pace.  Lyons, a tough, talented, and race savvy runner who has seen success at nearly every distance on the roads (a super nice guy too) knew his best bet was to get away from the strong kick of Price who has seen significant improvements since training with Steady State.  So the battle began and the clash between the successful marathoner versus the track guy took place.  The two not only continued to fight the wind and the course, but now came the series of surges and covers.  They covered mile 4 in 4:40 and were alone as all other competitors had been dropped.  Price said after the race,  "I knew I had to be there with a half mile to go.  It was tough, one of the best races I've ever had but I have been training too well to let him go.  He (Lyons) is one of the toughest guys I have ever raced."  The two continued to press and with a quarter mile to go remained together.  With a bit over 100 meters to go Darwin began to press after covering another Lyon's surge and with 30 meters to go pulled slightly ahead.  The two sprinted towards the finish and with a final surge over the last meters Lyon's fell just short of repeating and St. Louis saw a new St. Pat's Champion.  The two covered the final mile in another 4:40!  

Darwin crossed the line in 25:03 with Brian less than a second behind also finishing in 25:03.  The most memorable finish in recent years and impressive times on the newer, more difficult course; these two deserve huge credit for their efforts and for the show they put on.  Simply Put:  That Was One Hell of a Run.

I finished over a minute later in 26:06 but had a view of the sprint finish as we came down Market Street.  I ran the last mile and a half with Carter and Dan Strackeljahn.  Two guys I know pretty well and it was clear we took solace in each other's presence.  Strack put in a good last 800 to finish 6th and Carter had a strong final 100 meters to take 7th.  My first race since last June left me in 8th place and feeling like I had not only busted off some rust but reignited my desire to compete.  It was fun!  I ran a bit conservative due to an Achilles issue but was pleased with the effort and finished feeling happy.  It felt good to be back and I am certain it would have been that way had it been a minute slower.  

This race marked the last major road race for Darwin as outdoor season is kicking off and his pursuit of a national qualifier in the 1500 is officially underway.  For me, this race marked a return to racing and the debut of the new Steady State Running team jersey.  The St. Pat's run left us both feeling happy with where we are at, impressed with the competition, and looking forward to the future.  Thanks for reading and stay tuned as the journey for each of us continues to unfold.