The temps were right around 32 for my 10-miler Saturday morning, but the sun was out and thankfully, there was no real wind. I went into the city for practice with Team In Training, but was the only one there training for a full, so I ran solo anyhow. It was still great to hit the Newton Hills and I must have said good morning to 200 runners!
Look who/what I ran into on Heartbreak Hill!
Waiting to cross the street. I don’t know the gorilla or those other two runners.
Totally ridiculous, right?
Something has been up with my Garmin lately and this weekend it refused to track anything after my first mile. I could still keep an eye on the time and once I mapped and calculated, I was excited to see I ran what felt like a comfortable/easy nine minute pace.
I went out feeling strong and really hung in there. I didn’t feel like I faded on the hills, only got passed by a few dudes who were way out of my running-league, and wasn’t at all sore on Sunday morning. Maybe I should have gone harder?
I am really curious to see how I hold up in a race setting, since it has been so long and since I know there’s much more motivation to move faster when you aren’t just up against yourself. Saturday afternoon I got an email grandfathering me into a 10-mile trail race I begged my way into, and while I don’t expect to manage anything record-setting on trails, I am SO excited to give something new a shot. Plus, it’s the weekend before the NJ Half and about a month before my full, so it will be a nice, soft break for my knees and any aching bits.
Aside from my long run, the rest of the weekend was spent all-out indulging. With an evening honoring St. Paddy and an afternoon celebrating two just-turned-7-year olds, there were green margaritas, mint chocolate chip cookies, birthday cake, and beer. Happy Monday, everyone!