Start slow, then taper off

On Saturday, I came in sixth in my age group in the local 20K run (12.4 miles). One qualifier: there were only 6 runners in my age group. The first three miles were on hills and the first six miles were into the wind, and since we were in farm country, there was nothing around to stop the wind. Needless to say, that since I was sick a couple of weeks ago and could hardly stay awake for work much less to go running, I hit the wall fairly early. At 10K point, I had a time of 1:06 but shortly after my legs started to refuse to work and lightning began striking one of my toes whenever I would hit the pavement. So, I decided to walk / run with a fellow jogger, Deb. We finished the last 6 miles together, complained about the wind, enjoyed the scenery, and finished with the exact same time of 2:28:19. I guess I could be disappointed that I wasn't able to run the whole thing, but then I think about all the people that didn't move 12 miles away from their home yesterday much less compete in a race.