A year ago today was the Boston Marathon bombings. I'll never forget that day as it touched so close to home, with several friends running the race and competing in it being a goal of mine. I was glad everyone I knew made it through safely. That day, I ran 18 miles and thought of those running the marathon, while I was doing my long run. After that, I went to a track meet and that's when I first actually heard about the bombings.
Today was a terrible weather day. It has been raining since early in the morning and is supposed to continue. Sometimes, it came down very hard. I thought I'd have a break in the late afternoon, before supper. While it did let up, I never actually got a break. It rained throughout my run. It was warm though, so I wore shorts and short sleeves.
I took the last two days off after back to back 80 mile weeks. I knew my body needed some good rest. I headed out to the Lehigh Parkway to run 8 easy miles. I don't even know what made me decide to run there. I knew it would be sloppy and pavement would've been a better choice. I guess I liked the idea of a 6 mile loop to get through most of the run.
I took off and felt great in the early going, other than getting wet. I was also slightly cold, until I warmed up. The legs felt great though and I was well rested. I wore older shoes, since I knew they would get messed up. I cruised around through the puddles on the stone path as I headed toward the Robin Hood Bridge. Early on, I realized that this is the same place I did my 18 miler exactly a year ago. I didn't even plan it that way.
The rain was light in the beginning, but it picked up pretty quickly. I was happy that I had a hat to keep it out of my eyes. As the trail curved, past the bridge, I came into a headwind. Now, it was uncomfortable and cold. I came across a pair of ducks. I saw two more a short while later and another pair near the end.
After opening with slightly over an 8 minute mile, I was flying through mile 2. That ended up being just over 7 minutes. Most of the first 1.5 miles was flat and somewhat enjoyable. I went through the paved section and that was a nice change.
There aren't many hills, but some of them did cause me slight trouble today. Before long, I was back near the clubhouse, but on the other side of the creek. That was around 2.5 miles. I now had flat running for awhile. There was a good amount of rain coming down and I was soaked.
I passed another runner around mile 3. I saw him starting when I started and he was going slower than me. I figured that he must not have run up the Fish Hatchery Hill. Other than him, it was quiet out there. I kind of enjoyed the peacefulness. Even on a rainy day, the Parkway can be a beautiful place to run.
I ran mile 4 at a sub 7 minute pace. That ended right before the Fish Hatchery Hill. I don't run hills much these days, so I wasn't sure what to think. I was surprised at how easy it was. I was cruising up it. I got to the short, flat section part way up. Then, I was humbled. Climbing the second half of the hill was a bit of a struggle and had me breathing heavy. I ended up running that mile at just over 8 minutes. Going downhill was a nice recovery.
After the hill, I was definitely feeling it. I couldn't wait to get to mile 5 and then mile 6. The short, rolling hills were tough by now. At least it was raining less. I saw a guy fishing in this area. It was good to go down the hill by the clubhouse. I passed two women going the other way, followed shortly by the guy that was running earlier. Those were the only runners out there today.
I completed the loop at exactly 10k distance. I now had less than 2 miles to go. I headed back out. I decided I would cross the Robin Hood Bridge, for a shortened loop back to the clubhouse. The small hill was a bit of a challenge.
It wasn't too long until I was back at the clubhouse. I elected to finish the final third of a mile on the road. I headed out until I hit that point. The rain was picking up again by now. I was happy to be done, but walking back a third of a mile was into the rain. It became quite cold.
This day made me reflect a lot. At this time last year, I figured I'd be preparing for Boston right now. It's disappointing that things didn't go as planned. I guess God had other plans for me though. I'm just grateful to be able to run and run well. I remember those 18 miles last year and they were challenging. Now, 18 miles seems like a piece of cake. I'm so much stronger and faster than I was. Eventually, it will pay off and I'll reach mile goal. Hopefully, it will happen sooner rather than later.
Tomorrow, I'm looking to put in about 12 miles. If it isn't too difficult, I'd like to run them around a 7 minute pace. More mileage near goal pace is always helpful. I don't know where I'm going to run at. I don't want to do too much though, since I'm planning on running a 5k race on Thursday evening. I need to be fresh for that.
8 miles - 58:47 (7:21 pace)
No comments:
Post a Comment