Yesterday was a much needed rest day. I'm now in marathon taper mode. The plan for today was to run 8 miles or so. I forgot to do wash, so I had to run in the evening, when my clothes were clean.
As usual, I struggled with where to run at. I'm always looking for different places. Mertz had told me that running on River Road in Phillipsburg, New Jersey was nice. He said there's not much traffic.
It was very hot and muggy day. Even after 7:15 PM, it was still that way. The air seemed very dense. I started at the Forks of the Delaware, south of the Lehigh River in Easton. This is often where I turn around when I start at Riverview. Since it was hot, I went shirtless.
I began by running over and across the Lehigh River. I then ran along Larry Holmes Drive. I crossed the Delaware River there, over the free bridge. It is always neat to be able to say that I ran in 2 different states.
I headed north along Main Street Phillipsburg. I ran past an old plant that my dad used to work at in the 70s. Somewhere around 1.5 miles, I was on to River Road. That goes next to the plant.
I headed out on the road for a bit. I was hoping to get to 2.5 miles or even better, 3 miles. I cruised out. I noticed a trailhead and kiosk next to the road. I figured that I would stop there on the way back.
The legs had felt kind of awful in the beginning. I really feel 80 and 90 mile weeks, the following week. It will probably take its toll on me this week. The legs did come around and get better. One thing that was nice is the sun was setting by mile 3.
Mertz told me there was a hill. As I neared mile 3, I was alongside some railroad tracks. Then, I started climbing the hill. It was fairly steep and would've been tough during a long run, but today it wasn't so bad. There were a few cars on this road, but with like 3 miles of running, I'd say it was only 10-12 cars.
I climbed the hill and there was an awesome view of the river below. The hill behind it was amazing too. I had to go down the hill slightly to hit mile 3. I turned around then.
It was good to head back down hill. My legs were feeling okay by now, but that was just it. They didn't seem sharp or fast. They still aren't rested.
I came back to the kiosk and stopped briefly. I learned that it is called the Warren Highlands Trail. It looks like a decent little place to run a few miles. I'll check it out soon. I love finding new places to run.
I headed back toward Phillipsburg. It was nice to hit mile 4, but I was still only halfway done. I merely focus on getting back across the bridge. Eventually, I got to the bridge. There's was very attractive mom there.
I crossed over the bridge and got back to Pennsylvania. It was still a little muggy, but with the sun setting and the slow pace, it was not too bad. I got back to the car, just before mile 6.
I had 2 miles left yet. My pace was slightly under 8 minutes per mile. I decide to head south on the D&L. I'd go out a mile.
I don't like this surface too much. It is stone. It's a little loose too. I've run on worse though. I passed three young people. I always worry that those types might pose a threat, especially with no one else on the trail. They were only taking photos though.
I came to some geese in the trail at 6.94 miles. Rather than make them move, I turned right around. I'd add a little later. There are some awesome views up the river now and of the train bridge. I can see it, as I run toward Easton.
I passed the kids again. I looked at my watch frequently in the last half mile. I go under the bridges and get back to the park. I have to run a short bit on the pavement, to finish up. I then walk back to the car after 7 miles.
It was a solid run to start the week. I need to work on running sharp and also recovering now. I can't remember the last time my legs were truly fresh. It would be great if they felt good on marathon day.
Tomorrow, I'm not sure what I'm doing. I'd like to get up and run a track workout with some others. It would probably be really fast, like 200s. A lot of short, fast stuff would be good. I'm hoping I can get up. I don't think that that mileage would be much, so I'd probably run later on too. I want to get about 55 miles this week. That would be like 9 miles a day.
8 miles - 1:03:22 (7:55 pace)
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