Battling through all those harsh winter days, I knew eventually spring would arrive. It has gone crazy in fact. The temperature today jumped into the 70s. Perfect for some outdoor fun.
I was going to do my weekly long run on Sunday, but I was just so busy. I had planned to take today off, so instead I just switched the days around. I took off yesterday and ran my 16 miler today.
I didn't have much of a window to fit the run in today either. When you plan on running for over 2 hours, it can sometimes be tough to find the time. I ran right after work and just before the Nazareth track meet. Of course I went with shorts and I even pulled out the LVRR singlet too on this warm day.
As usual, I went to the D&L to run. It is right down the street from work, so that is perfect. I started at the Cove Road Trailhead. As I was beginning the run, a couple with a baby and two dogs were starting a walk. The one dog, Rufus, was really friendly. He let me go eventually. They told me he would probably want to run with me. Luckily, he didn't follow.
I started off heading north. This part is uphill. I certainly didn't feel terrible in the beginning, but I could've felt better. I just cruised along. I really had no idea how far out I wanted to go (at least 3 miles). The first mile was a comfortable 8:12. I got a little faster after that.
My legs weren't too bad once they warmed up. The path seems to slope towards the river and it felt awkward. I carried on. Mile 2 was a faster 8:06. In general, my pace was just over 8 minutes for most of the beginning of the run.
I tried to tell myself to slow down because it was significantly hotter than it has been. It would also be awhile until I got a drink. I kept thinking I needed to slow down, but going uphill I ended up working a little harder and didn't slow at all.
Miles 3 and 4 were both actually under an 8 minute pace. At mile 3, I passed the horses and their stable. I came up on a cute woman and was hoping I'd see her when I turned around, but that didn't happen. There were a lot people out walking and biking. I saw some of the people on bikes over and over again.
Since I was feeling good at mile 3, I kept going. I just wanted to get out to 3.5 miles and turnaround. When I got there, I decided to make it 4 miles. As I hit the 4 mile point, I decided to turnaround at 4.5 miles. That is finally what I did.
I was getting somewhat thirsty, so maybe I would've benefited by turning around earlier. At this point, I would arrive back and my car at 9 miles. That would have me over halfway done with the run.
Miles 5, 6, and 7 were tough. I couldn't believe how far I had to go. I was just thankful it was a nice spring day. That helped make things easier. I actually wasn't sweating too much. My legs weren't strong, but they were okay.
Finally, I made it to the 8 mile point. I was pretty beat at this point and couldn't believe I was only halfway done. I had no idea how I would finish the run. I ran past the couple and the dogs and they commented that I had lapped them. I told them I was only halfway done. I saw them again later and they had walked for almost 2 hours. I was impressed.
One other interesting thing happened as I was about a mile out from my car. There is a house along the trail with a lot of junk in the yard. A guy was out working in the yard and I heard a rooster call. I then saw 2 of them in his yard. That isn't something you come across everyday.
Seeing the Route 145 bridge within the last mile to the car was a big boost. I knew I was about to grab some Gatorade. Mile 9 was actually a 7:55 pace and my overall pace at this point was right around 8 minutes flat.
I stopped briefly at the car and finished my bottle of Gatorade. I didn't want to stand there too long, so I headed back out quickly. This time around, I started running much slower. I wanted to survive the run.
One thing that make it so difficult is that there are no leaves on the trees yet. The sun is beating down. I ended up with some sunburn.
From this point on, every quarter of a mile was even a struggle. I thought going downhill in the southern direction would make it easier, but it didn't. My legs were starting to get sore. I hadn't even hit 10 miles, but I felt like I was nearly at 16 miles. I wondered how I could keep going.
I went by the house that usually has annoying dogs, but they weren't out. I just kept hoping to go another half mile. I really didn't want to go too far though and struggle to get back. I figured that a few short out and back runs would make the run more manageable. In the end, it didn't matter. It was difficult no matter how you slice it.
I wanted to go out 2 miles, but 1.5 miles ended up being enough. I sputtered along. It seemed like forever to get back to the car again. Most of my miles were now between 8:30 and 9 minutes. All were under 9 minutes.
I got back to the car and took just a small amount more of my Gatorade. I couldn't believe I still had 4 miles left. I felt like I was lucky if I could make it through 2 more miles. I just battled on.
I headed north again. I was just planning on one mile out and one mile back and then I'd head in the other direction again. I did that, but I talked myself into another half mile. That was a struggle.
Coming back was so slow. I knew I had to at least make it back to the car. That would be 15 miles. That would match my long run from 2 weeks ago. I looked at my watch at what seemed like every .1 miles. The run dragged on and on.
Finally, I was back and the car and exhausted. I knew I could somehow manage another mile though. I wanted to run .75 miles out and .25 miles back. I plugged along. As I approached .5 miles, I saw a different couple with a dog up ahead. I didn't want to deal with that, so I just turned around earlier than I would've liked. I struggled back uphill to the car, but I made it and finished up under the bridge with 16 miles.
It was so rewarding to finish the run. I decided to take even more advantage of the weather and ride my bike after dinner. I just wanted an easy recovery ride. That was perfect because I when to Mill Race Park and biked for 6 easy miles. That gave me a solid 30 minutes of recovery riding.
It was an exhausting day and I'll sleep well tonight. I'd like to run at Trexler tomorrow. After the long run today, I'm not going to shoot for running the whole loop. I'll save that for the weekend. I'd also like to bike again. I do have a LVRR Group Run meeting to attend tomorrow evening.
16 miles - 2:13:39 (8:21 pace)
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