A lot of it depends on the course honestly...the Knoxville track club likes to put huge hills on some of their courses and the upcoming 10k is one of the hilliest courses of all the races they hold. But if I throw in some serious hill training in exchange for a tempo or speed interval run during the week It could help me not lose much time on the hills. I try and bank time on the flats and downhills and it works pretty well, it's all a matter of finding that perfect pace on the uphill that doesn't burn me out before the end of the race.
I appreciate your faith in my capability my friend! 4 weeks to go and we'll see where I finish. My fastest 10k ever and only one I've run in under 40 minutes was actually the first 10k out of a 15k race but it was a net downhill so I don't really count that. For just a 10k distance my record is somewhere just under 41 minutes. So 42 will be a challenge but I'm gonna give it a shot!
I bet for 41'30" ;-)