So, this past holiday weekend I missed out on hitting the big FIVE OH, but I did manage to get in a SOLID 43 miles. It all started out on Thursday as a wicked front moved through. I knew that I was going to have to run through some rain, but what I encountered in the wee hours of Turkey Day, I totally didn't expect. Basically, I got caught out in a brutal downpour thunderstorm about a mile and a half from home. Needless to say, my 8 mile run, turned into an ALL OUT SPRINT FOR HOME. It was kinda eerie. It was just a light sprinkle as I left the house, and there were openings in the clouds to where you could see the stars. I didn't think it was going to be all that bad, and at the start it wasn't. It was actually quite pleasant. That all changed when I hit the Silverbell stretch. I made the right turn, and the morning had progressed enough that I could see the clouds pretty clearly. They were VERY puffy, and all of a sudden, I started seeing flashes. I didn't really think much about it, I couldn't hear any thunder, so it was pretty far off in the distance. But what I didn't know, was that this was a FAST moving and aggressive storm that, roughly a quarter mile later, consumed me. It was so quiet outside. I only saw a couple of cars out. And that that ultimately the calm before the storm. You know your in trouble when all of a sudden, the hills in front of you totally dissappear. Then, I could hear the rain pounding on the pavement in front of me. That's when my 8:30 pace, was quickly elevated to a 6. And that's when I turned into a drenched swamp rat. Everything was soaked, head to toe. And my 6 min mile pace turned to a 5 something when that lighting and thunder burst hit. I turned the corner, went through a Safeway, and sprinted the downhill to home. Never before had I been so excited to make it home. It was raining so hard, my kids and dog were all up. The rain was hiting the windows and echoing off the roof. Totally weird for a November storm, and nothing that I've ever experienced this late into the year. I was a bit dissapointed that I didn't get all of my miles in. It was Turkey day, and I knew that there was a ton of great food waiting for me up in Phoenix. But I did manage to get in a 4 mile effort later that evening after all of the food settled to round out the day at 7 miles.
Fridays run totally got overcome by events. My wife an I headedout for Black friday shopping to get a new TV. Ours died on Wednesday morning, and we figured we would take advantage of the great deals. I guess if it were going to break, it picked an oppertune moment to do it. After we got back form teh maddness that was shopping, I spent the rest of the afternoon getting my fathers deisel motorhome an emissions inspection. That was after the tow service came out and got the batteries recharged....What should ahve taken less then an hour, turned out to be an all afternoon adventure. By the time we got back, there was no time for a run, and we had to eat dinner and get back to Tucson.
Saturdays run is where it gets exciting. On the menu was 4x1 mile repeats. I really like this workout. It's set up to get you to run a nice Consistant pace. I probably should have run them at my goal marathon pace, like many of the others, but I was feeling GREAT. My first set I went out and hung on the tail of Butch and managed to eek out a 7:20. My breathing felt great and I really didn't labor too much. We walked in circles during the rest period and headed back out. Set number 2 came in at a 7:19. Great for consistency, but I really didn't feel all that labored. Again, we walked ciricles through the rest period, and I set off for set number 3.....At this point, I was about 5 seconds behind Butch....He'd crossed the line a few seconds before I had on the previous two sets. So I took off somewhat alone. My goal was to run with Butch, so I figured I needed to catch up. Especially after I looked up, and he looked much farther away then ususal. So I looked down at my watch, and I noticed my current pace at a 6:54. So I thought to myself, he's not going to keep that pace up. At the half mile, I had caught up to him, and sat right on his heels. By the 1000m mark, I had actually passed him, and when I finished the set, I crossed the line at 7:02! I thought to myself...Are you kidding me! A 7:02 on the THIRD set. One of the faster marathoner runners saw the grin on my face, and asked what my split was...I think he took a longer rest so that he could pace with me on the last set. His marathon goal pace is a 7 min/mile next Sunday. I took off, and he went with me. We finished the 4th set in 7:09! All I can say is WOW! Actually, Dave threw in a WHOAH!!! You're flying today! That was a nice little booster there. After we finished the workout, which included a 5x1minute, I logged 6 miles, plus the 1.25 mile warm up and cool down. We all went back to the cars together, and Michele came up with a big smile and said great job! That was a huge booster. My running is REALLY turned a corner to the next level.
And that takes me to Sunday. I started the day with a little Sunday weigh in ritual. To my surprise, I weighed in at 176 pounds. Officially, that 33 pounds lighter since August. I set out on my run and I was still coming off the high from Saturday, which really helped out. It was a crisp morning, and my legs felt fresh. I did the same route that I did for the 14 miles, and added two to the end. As I crossed through the street that could have led me to home, I was CRUISING at a 8:30 pace, and felt strong. No mental barrier there. I got to the 14 mile mark in 2:04, 3 minutes faster then before. I decided to take a little break, to get my last bit of Gatorade endurance down, and took in the beautiful morning. I then started back up after a couple of mins, and finished out the last 2 miles, which ended up being two and a quarter. And I finished strong. I continued my 8:30 pace and completed the entire run in 2hours and 30minutes.
In all, I ended up with 43 miles for the week. yes, it was a little short of the goal, but nothign to get down about! My legs still felt frech this morning on my 3.5 mile recovery run, and I am already looking forward to tomorrows group run!
Until then, TRAIN HARD and LIVESTRONG!
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