Last week, I ran 80 miles. I've done that a few times before. I started this week off so well, that I made 90 miles a goal. I'll get there, but it definitely hasn't been easy.
The hard part is that I've had no one to run with in the mornings to get me to do another 6-7 mile run. That would've been huge, especially today, when I slept in. I still needed 23 miles before today.
The weather was nice and cool, at least for this time of year. I still knew that I'd be hot and sweaty in the afternoon, so I ran shirtless. That was a good choice.
I wanted a softer surface today, so I opted to go to the Route 33 Boat Launch. I would run on the stone/dirt trail toward Freemansburg. Since I'm having blister problems, I went with my older shoes. They seemed to feel much better and more roomy. I didn't have any issues with that today.
I headed out nice and easy. In the beginning, a bunch of kids were jumping off of a tree and into the Lehigh River. I got very annoyed in this narrow singletrack section. Three sets of bikers went past me and I had to move for them. I saw some more bikers later on, but really not that many. There should not have been so many in such a short stretch.
As usual, mile 1 was slow and I got faster. My body definitely wasn't feeling great. I can't say it was terrible either. I wasn't exactly sore, my legs just felt dead. I think that was due to the running, plus lifting weights last night too.
I cruised along, past people and dogs. You can't see the river too often in this section, unless you really look over. A lot of the run looks the same. I really wanted 13 miles today, so I was hoping to go out 6.5 miles. I knew that that would take me out very far though.
I got to miles 2 and 3. Things were getting a little faster and I began running sub 8 minute miles. Still, I didn't feel all that great. It became obvious that I would turn around early.
After several miles of everything looking the same, there was finally a picnic bench and a clear view of the river. I knew I was near Freemansburg. I started running that stretch.
Most of the trail had been shaded up to that point, but now, I was in the sun. That was tricky. I tried to tell myself to slow down. I hit mile 4 and wanted to keep going. I hoped to make it to 4.5 miles at least.
There were a lot of geese as I ran this section. Shortly after mile 4, I felt like there were too many to run through. I turned around at 4.1 miles. I'd be over 8 miles when I got back to the car anyway.
I kept going and was headed back now. It was a relief to get back into the shade. With my legs feeling kind of crappy, the miles clicked off slowly. I knew I had to focus on getting back to the car and not worry about any other mileage.
Eventually, I got to miles 5, 6 and 7. I could tell that I was getting closer and closer to the Route 33 Boat Launch. I didn't think I was picking the pace up, but it looks like I got faster. The kids were gone from the swimming hole.
I got back to the parking lot and was over mile 8. The parking lot was exposed to the sun and it was hot. I was fairly soaked by this point, although it was mostly just my chest.
I decided to head onto the paved trail. I'd run out to mile 9.2 and turn around and have a brief walk back when I hit mile 10. Then, I'd call it a day. My legs just didn't have more than that and it was still a productive day.
It seemed a little while until I got to the turnaround point. I did and then I cruised on back. I always enjoy looking at my watch frequently in the last mile. I try to take it off an hold it in that final mile too. That is a symbol that I am nearly done. Finally, I was done after a fairly quick final mile.
I hoped to run more and feel better, but the run was still solid. I wish I could've had a second run in for the day, but I ran out of time. I went to a baseball game in the evening. I'll just have to pick it up tomorrow.
Speaking of tomorrow, I plan to run the Wilson Partners in Education 5k at Wilson High School. That was my first comeback race way back in 2009. I'm quite beat up now, so I don't know how well I'll run, but it will definitely be much faster than that day. I may either run home from the race or run later on for extra mileage. I need 13 total miles tomorrow, to reach 90 for the week. That would be my first 90 mile week ever.
10 miles - 1:19:00 (7:54 pace)
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