Early rise for the long drive from Cork to Enniscorthy, mixing a race in with a visit to the folks. 2 birds one stone. I arrived with plenty of time on a calm sunny morning, perfect conditions. The half marathon had just headed off so I got a 2 mile jog in and was feeling relatively good. Lined up in the field of about 200 runners and it was time to go.
Pre race expectations? A PB was a given with my only other 5 mile a 29:46 back in 2013. I knew the standard wouldn’t be terribly high so I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t hopeful of a win and a top 3 at the very least. Time wasn’t a factor today, I know the course is hilly with some long drags so this would be all about getting a good result and more racing experience.
Mile 1
Bang. Off we go. SC runner charged to the front and I sat in just behind. Was feeling pretty good and eased myself into 1st position and pushed on a bit to see who would come. Midway through the first mile it was just myself and another local runner (NS) didn’t know who he was at the time. I was still out front and comfortable enough though the first mile was pretty flat. Passed the mile marker and glanced at the watch, around 5:22 if I recall.
Mile 2
Now the fun begins and by fun I mean not fun. After the first mile marker we were faced with a sharp incline then turned right onto a long drag which went on for the guts of the next mile. I was feeling ok, NS was still right on my shoulder and breathing comfortably. I knew this was going to be a close one. I also knew at this stage who he was as I heard a spectator call his name, quality runner and last years winner. I was quite happy to have someone actually, it was going to be a proper race, exactly what I wanted. Passed the 2 mile marker but the watch didn’t beep for ages after it and 5:5x popped up. Ah jesus just forget about the time and race Conor!! To be fair I didn’t check the watch for the remainder of the race after that, I’m getting better 
Mile 3
The drag levelled off and I found myself feeling very comfortable and wondering if it was at all possible to drop this fella. I surged every now and then to test him but he kept coming with me and I had a feeling he was waiting for his moment though slightly annoying that he was sitting on my shoulder. Going pretty steady now and I was feeling confident. We turned left after the lead car and headed for home but not before tackling another drag leading into mile 4.
Mile 4
The legs were starting to scream a little here and pace again was pulled right back as we tackled the tough drag. Suddenly and unexpectedly, NS made a move which ended up being decisive. I didn’t even think twice, I had to go with him but was really struggling. We were barely into the 4th mile and I knew I couldn’t sustain this effort. I was breathing very heavily and had to back off but maybe I could have been tougher here. He had a gap now but I had still upped the effort and was holding it. Around halfway through the mile I realised why he had just done what he did. A massive downhill section for the remainder of the mile which was super fast and very much welcomed, I just let the legs do the work but NS had a big gap on me now and I knew I had a lot of work to do. It gave me some time to recover from the surge but I was almost resigned to 2nd place. I didn’t throw in towel though and I wanted to put in a strong finish.
Mile 5
Must have been running around 5:20 pace by now, working extremely hard to close the gap but he had too much on me at this stage. On our way back through the town and now aching for that finish line. I was happy with my effort today in that I didn’t just accept 2nd and I fought right until the end. The gap wasn’t getting any bigger but I have to hand it to NS as he timed that move to perfection and executed it brilliantly. I don’t mind losing to someone who was just simply better and I can learn a lot from runners like that, someone who know how to race. Finally got to the line 27 seconds behind the winner and that mile just flew by but I was fit to drop. I was pretty happy to see 27:4x on the clock, a satisfactory time given the course profile and another good result on my 2nd race back.
Summary: 5 miles in 27:43 @ 5:36 min/mile
Overall another step in the right direction but lacking that extra gear right now. I know it’ll come so patience required, and training, lots of training!