So although Westfield<\/a> is a little further than I would normally drive for just a 5K, when I saw that the course was USATF-certified<\/a> and also marketed as \u201cAmerica’s Fastest 5K,\u201d I thought this was my chance to get an actually-accurate 5K time. And yes, I broke 30! My official time is showing as 29:54, two whole seconds faster than 2003, but based on my watch I think that\u2019s gun time and not chip time. I contacted them to check and didn’t hear back, but it\u2019s likely that it was closer to 29:35 (still annoying not to know for sure\u2026)<\/p>\n It was a miserable start, in a giant parking lot associated with Westfield State University but out of sight of any interesting buildings. The weather was rainy and cold so I huddled in the car until close to the 1pm start, trying to decide if I wanted to run in a jacket or not. I\u2019m glad I didn\u2019t; this is part of gearing up for the marathon, getting back in the habit of running no matter the conditions. Look at the poor Boston Marathon runners this year! In the starting corral, I found the Walkers post and tried to wiggle a little beyond it. Then I was drawn by this ridiculous-looking thing, a “Beer Guy” sculpture on a jogging stroller base:<\/p>\n The top has a bubble machine and there\u2019s a sound system on it too.<\/p>\n I’ve been starting 5Ks a little faster but still conservative. At mile 2 there was another digital clock—thank you,\u00a0 RaceWire!—which as I recall was around 21, so\u00a0 I knew I was doing well and a PR might be in reach. I had no idea where the finish line actually was but I figured we had to be close once we passed the shuttle bus stop. We turned left on Elm and the finish was in sight. There wasn’t anybody in particular to pick off in the sprint but I tore into it (and it was crowded enough that the camera didn’t catch me crossing the finish line, but here I am between two people right before). I was sure that since the clock was just under 30 that I’d be safe with the chip time; thank goodness it wasn’t closer, so it’s still a PR!<\/p>\n There wasn’t anything besides water for the runners, which was disappointing, but a bank handed out popcorn and I got a sample of kettle corn (“French Toast,” surprising good). I would have gotten beer but the stand also offered bottled “margarita” malt beverage, surprisingly decent. I checked out the “Westfield On Weekends<\/a>” art classes gallery, a few shops, and the beautiful and historic Westfield Athaneum public library. One of the coolest sights was this “Unlimited High Fives” artwork:<\/p>\n![\""Beer](\"http:\/\/salticid.com\/marathon\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/20180519_125831-e1527444301152-169x300.jpg\")
<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0![\""Beer](\"http:\/\/salticid.com\/marathon\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/20180519_125806-300x169.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/salticid.com\/marathon\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/runwestfield-cropped.jpg\")
<\/a>Finally we were off. After a slight uphill from the parking lot and the turn onto the main street, the route goes straight down Western Ave, past the nice campus, Stanley Park (where a weekly trail run is held on Mondays during the summer), and beautiful homes and yards. It\u2019s pretty much a gentle downhill the whole way. There was a digital readout at mile 1,\u00a0 which was absolutely great—so much better than trying to peer at my watch or listen for a volunteer calling out times. I was at about 10:40 for the first mile which seemed OK. I heard “Shout” coming from behind, interspersed with loud horn beeps, and it was Beer Guy gaining on me. He passed fairly quickly, just as the song changed to “Do The Locomotion,” and I yelled that it was motivating to try and beat him. I was able to pass again a little later, just because one of his doo-dads fell off, but pretty soon he was way out ahead.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/salticid.com\/marathon\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/20180519_140144-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n