Race Report: South Nyack 10 Miler, 10 September 2023, South Nyack, New York

(Pictures by Shamala Thompson)

This has been a long time coming. My first competitive road race in four years (thanks to injury, COVID, and other more lame excuses as explained here). It’s felt almost as long to get round to doing what I used to do immediately after every race – tapping the keys to write a race report while it was fresh in my mind. Even my new running buddy, fellow Cold Sping village resident Luke McCoubrey, was asking where’s the report! So to keep the tradition alive – me racing and then telling everyone about it – here goes.

Before COVID

Let me first roll back the clock to the year 1 BC (Before COVID). In 2019 I was starting to have more than my fair share of ‘issues’, the ones aging runners suffer from. Nagging injuries, likely from over use and lack of TLC, made worse by stubborness. And then broadcasting it to fellow runners. Notwithstanding these issues I was still able to maintain a near full training diet. And on 2 September 2019 I ran the New Haven Half Marathon finishing second in 1:14:35 to my much younger training pal Mo’ath Alkhawaldeh (who ran for Jordan in the marathon at the World Championships last month in Budapest).

Since that race I’d done the Bushy 5K Park Run on 28 December 2019 (my 52nd birthday!) in 16:55 and the virtual Britsh Masters Virtual 5K Road Champs in June 2020 in 16:48. So for the 10 mile race in South Nyack was more than 4 years since I last did a ‘full blown’ race. I’ve been injury free for many months and getting in 50-60 miles per week including the occasional workout. Training was not ideal in the final few weeks. On vacation in Switzerland my training routine got messed up.

To make race day as simple and stress free as possible Sham and I collected my race packet the previous day from Dick’s Sporting Goods at the Pallisades Center, a monster mall from a bygone era – big box retail with wrap around parking lot.

Race Day

Race day started as usual with an alarm call that I had already woke up for. Amazing how we set alarms but then our body decides it will wake up just before. If we did not set it we’d just sleep through. Life is strange. I quickly settled into my tried and tested routine – coffee with oatmeal, bathroom stop, shower. And then we were off. We arrived in plenty of time for the start so I got a few miles warm-up done followed by strides and stretching.

Relaxed start

As it had been such a long time since I last raced two things were nagging me. One how would I cope entering the pain cave again. No matter how hard we push in training, racing is a whole new level of hurt. And what pace should I start out at? As habit would have it I had three goals – if the stars aligned (58 minutes, enough to get me into top 5 in UK M55 10 mile rankings, that’ll do nicely (60 minutes, a nice round number) and that will do (61:30ish, the time for my first ever 10 miler at age 19, 38 years ago).

Problem was finding a runner or pack of runners to help me pace: I’d never raced on the West Bank (of the Hudson River) aside from Jersey City and further afield so I knew no one! But as chance would have it the first runner I spoke to – Dave DiCerbo, a 43 year old who had done 2:51 in April’s Boston Marathon – said he was aiming for 60 minutes! The course is fast, mainly flat, but the weather was brutal.

The humidity was like the tropics, comparable with my days in Singapore. By the conclusion of my warm-up, 2 miles jog then some easy strides, I was already sweating profusely. NYRR races start in seeded corrals with runners packed like sardines and many trying to eke out a few feet advantage over others. This race was very different. I simply sauntered to the front line, unimpeded. Such a polite and courteous lot.

And then we were off. The first mile dropped away from South Nyack’s town center to River Road. A group of runners, including those who would secure the top four positions, quickly opened up a gap. I scrambled to find my usual rhythm, if there is such a thing as usual when you haven’t raced for years. I passed the first mile with DiCerbo in 5:49. It felt faster.

River Road is a gently undulating, straight residential street 3 miles long that closely follows the river with comfortable residential Stepford wives properties, one deep, between the road and river. The road surface was perfect. I gradually lost ground to the leaders but was keen to keep them in sight as long as possible. I traded places with a few others but then settled into 8th. Given the humidity I decided to drink at water stations. There were a number, each with a number of volunteers. I got into the knack of grabbing a paper cup, squeezing the neck and sipping from the corner.

By mile 3 I had settled into running around 6 mpm pace, my target pace to close it in 60 minutes. The Piermont Pier, around the half way point, came into view on the left. At mile 4 the race passes through the centre of the quaint Village of Piermont before heading onto the pier – this website explains:

“Hand-built in the mid-1800s, the 4,000-foot-long pier originally served as the terminus of the Erie Railroad; passengers disembarked from trains onto boats bound for New York City. During World War II, some 500,000 GIs stepped off the pier onto troop ships headed for Europe, earning it the nickname “Last Stop U.S.A.”

At the end of the pier the race U turned and we then retraced our steps back to the finish, all bar a short out and back at mile 9. As I passed through Piermont around mile 6 it dawned on me that I would struggle to maintain my pace. Despite hydrating I was chronically dehydrated and starting to tire. I had a flashback to my last 10 mile race – the Bronx 10 in 2018 where I ran 54:29, the fastest M50 in the US and UK that year. In that race I incrementally increased my pace from mile 6. I realized then that I was not the same athlete.

And so it proved to be a long hard day at the office. From mile 6 onwards my pace drifted to around 6:15mpm. I did, however, pass a runner. The others were so far ahead I could only glimpse them on long straight aways. The ninth mile proved the low point. This mile was essentially the reverse of the first mile and as such was mainly uphill. By now I was treading as well as sweating water.

Just after mile 9 the race jumped onto the Esposito trail for a short out and back segment to make up for a route change prompted by an over-height tractor-trailer taking out the South Broadway Thruway overpass 10-days before the race. It was a trail too far for me. The closing few miles I simply hung on slowly losing a grip of things. And then it was all over.

Closing in one the finish line

Post Race Analysis

And then I remembered this is why I do it. For the release from the relentless pain, the relief of knowing it was all over. And now it was time to refuel, binge style and chill out with and soak up the camaraderie in a kind of runner’s kumbaya.

Collecting bling for first M55

I ended up 7th of some 300 runners in 61:21. I finished second M50 (first M55) to 52 year old Art Gunther. Can you believe I last raced this guy in the NYRR Scotland 10K in April 2005!? And just like then finished behind him. The overall winners were Robert Guidicipietro (55:47) and Abbey Kimbrell (67:07) for the men’s and women’s divisions respectively. My official race results are here. Race photos are online at the race website (#158) with searchable results and pictures.

Fortunately I seem to have come through unscathed. My old injury shows no sign of coming back. The race was an altogether great experience. A well organized, competitive, local community race rather than a big NYRR cookie cutter race. This year the South Nyack 10-Miler celebrated its 35th year. And for $35 I got free beer, a bagel and a banana – and whippy ice cream. Hats off to Rockland Road Runners. I look forward to next year’s race.

Next Up

I finished writing this shortly after spectating the New Balance Bronx 10 Mile where Luke ran his best race to date – 63:59. I was more than a little envious. Of him competing, and competing well, in a race I love. Reflecting on the day I am left trying to rethink and refocus. The days of running under 55 minutes for 10 miles are long gone. What can I now hope to achieve? Maybe sub-60 ten mile at 60? Even if much less than before I still love running, runners and racing! Watch this space.