Yesterday I raced the Atlanta Track Club Jerome Scales Southside 5 Miler in College Park, GA. This was the target race for my training cycle. The Jerome Scales Southside event has been held in two locations and various distances. This was my eighth year participating, third at this location, and second at this distance.
- Official time
- 38:51
- Average pace
- 7:47 min/mi
- VDOT
- 41.3 (@ 62°F)
- Splits
- Mile 1
- 7:49
- Mile 2
- 7:52
- Mile 3
- 7:45
- Mile 4
- 7:53
- Mile 5
- 7:31
- Ranking
-
- Overall
- 210/1,161
- Male
- 173/602
- Age Group (M40–44)
- 21/74
- Event Page
- 2025 Jerome Scales Southside 5M
- Strava Activity
- ATC Jerome Scales Southside 5 Miler
Jack Daniels’ online VDOT calculator indicated 7:50/mile pace for five miles as equivalent to my result from the Turkey Strut 5k. My plan was to shoot for something in the 7:50–8:00/mi pace range for the first three miles, and then try to pick up the pace for the last two miles.
I ran those first three miles a touch on the fast side of that plan. I came into the fourth mile with my watch indicating a 7:51/mi average so far, so I tried to pick it up to ~7:45/mi, but that fourth mile is where the bulk of the elevation is. I pushed up the hills trying to keep the faster paced, but worried that I might blow up on the fifth mile. The fifth mile was painful, but I kept repeating in my mind, “make it hurt, make it hurt…” Strava indicates by grade-adjusted pace for each mile were 7:48, 7:49, 7:50, 7:35, and 7:39. With those numbers, I feel good about my first three miles, and I think I did hurt my fifth mile pushing too hard on the fourth mile, but not too badly. I didn’t die on that last mile, just slowed a touch, but not slower than my first three.
With temperatures of 62°F, the 38:51 finish time is a VDOT score of 41.3, my highest since 2024’s 3,000m track race, and my best road race since 2023’s Jerome Scales Southside 5 miler.