Bad Strategy: Biedleheimer 10K

I have run this course twice, once down, and once up. So here's what I knew (or thought I knew, to be accurate): The first mile and a half a rolling, with a short, steep climb before a long, long downhill. Then it flattens out before another 1/2-mile downhill at the end of the 5th mile, and then it's flat or uphill to the finish.
So my plan was simple: ease into the first couple of miles, let it fly on the big downhill, coast to the next downhill, crank it out again, and then hold on to the finish.
I did the first mile a little faster than I had planned: 7:11. So I took it down a little for the second mile, and did that in 7:50. So, I felt like I was right where I wanted to be. That big hill came, and I flew down it: I blasted down that hill. And that was my big mistake. I crushed that third mile in 6:44, when really I would have been better off doing it around 7 even.
The reason I say that is because I forgot that after that huge downhill comes a longish uphill, with one or two steep sections. (At this point I wished I had read my blog summary from last year's race, where I make much the same observation.) And the loose gravel was really giving me problems: I wasn't generating quite as much forward momentum as I would have liked. So that hill really took a lot out of my legs. I finished that mile in about 8:50, and I was really tired.
The fifth mile started out flat, but I forgot about another hill before the final descent. Well, I actually did remember it; I was didn't remember it being so steep. It's not a long climb, but it's painful. I just kept in mind how much harder it is running this course in the other direction, and I'd done that, so I could get through this. What a relief to finally start that descent! By the time I hit the 5-mile marker, I had long, smooth strides flowing again.
As I entered the 6th mile, the road started a very slight incline. Suddenly everything became a struggle. It was gut-check time: I kept pushing and pushing. About 3/4 of the way through that mile, I could hear footsteps behind me. It was about time to start picking up the pace for the last kick, so I determined to hold off whoever was coming up behind me. I went down the hill into the park entrance, and felt a little bit of pep in my step. I hit the 6th mile in 7:50.
Right after I passed that mile marker, however, I totally bonked. My breathing was fine, but I just could not push my legs any more. I was still running, but there was nothing in the tank. Michal Philippe and Joe Shuta surged past me, and there was nothing I could do to respond. Those last 2 tenths took me almost 2 and half minutes of agony, but I finally pushed across the finish in 48:44.

I finshed 23rd out of 48 runners. You can see the complete results here.