Be the Hunter, Not the Hunted

Dream Maker today, my achilles has felt decent the past couple days so I thought I'd through some speed at it and see what happens. We started out at a good pace and I was staying mentally tough. Half-mile in I surged to the lead and started pushing a little more. Last time I made this move I was able to hold it somewhat and Connor and Ryan were the only ones who passed me. This time was a little different. There was a major headwind, so leading was definitely not fun, and fatigue was coming fast because I haven't gotten much sleep for the past week. So here I was, leading a group of Connor, Ryan, Thomas, and I. A little before a mile in I lost them and was on my own. First mile was 5:32. My legs felt like lead going up that last hill and the wind didn't make it any easier. Austin caught me at the base of airport and he had a little bit of a gap on me so we were both fighting the wind individually. I should've stuck with him then to get some major drafting going. But I caught him again at the top of the hill and I thought I was home free on the last stretch, but no, here comes Austin on my shoulder so I sprinted my little heart out into the wind and I think I might've edged him out at the line but it was close. Time was 9:06, 26 seconds off my PR. Up until this point my achilles felt great, no pain. About .25 into the cool down it seized up big time. It was a painful trip back to the school. So, I see biking and swimming in my future for the next 5 days. Great effort from everyone today. I freaking love my team.