Sunday, October 22, 2006

Ten miles today - First since May

Training for my half this time around has been spotty at best. I really lost motivation in the hot, humid North Carolina summer and then had a lot of trouble getting back into the swing of things.

The first real long run of my abbreviated training cycle was supposed to be 9 miles last weekend, but an ankle sprain at the beach kept me off the roads for a few days. Determined to make sure I got in my long run this weekend, I planned things to allow myself a few hours on Sunday. I vaguely remember waking up sometime this morning, realizing it was raining, swearing, and going back to sleep. Hours later I finally made it outside.

This being my first real cold run of the year, I really wasn’t sure what to wear. Add the rain to that and I was worried – so worried that I overdressed. It was 55 degrees out and raining. I wore a pair of Doug’s gore-tex pants, a long-sleeved wicking shirt, and a vest. About two miles in the pants were starting to stick to my sweaty legs and my sleeves had been yanked up.

Overall the run was pretty uneventful. I didn’t see anything exciting, didn’t solve the world’s problems, and didn’t even see anything funny. On a cold, rainy day, there just isn’t that much to see. It did occur to me with about a mile left that maybe 10 miles is a little far to go without water, as my hamstrings and calves started cramping up. The thing is I had endurolyte capsules with me – but no water! Oh well, lesson learned…even when it’s cold, it’s best to have water for that distance.

Oh! There is one thing. I wore Doug’s Garmin even though I had mapped out the route before leaving. The Garmin says I ran 385.2 miles in 1:36:08 – apparently I’m the World’s Fastest Woman….

Thanks for reading.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

WTG, Em!!! Pretty good first outing. I guessed right for my first cold race this morning. I went with a singlet and shorts, the same thing I wear in the summer. Turned out just right, until I finished. Then I was freezing.

Good report.