running log - 1/21/06

12 miles with darrin

12 hilly miles. REALLY hilly miles. i was really looking forward to this run, especially since it almost didn't happen. the weather was nice - sunny and around 37 degrees with just a little breeze. considering it's mid-january, we certainly can't complain.

the first 3.5 miles or so are just teasers. they start out flat, then down, up, and down a long hill. at about the 4-mile mark sits the steepest hill of the course. i've ridden my bike on it many times, but until today had never ran it. well i'll tell ya - it is steep. and pretty darn long too. i shortened my stride and got up it very well. a combination of rolling hills and longer hills are the norm until the 7-mile mark. about 6 miles in my legs started to feel heavy. i was concerned for a little while, but the feeling went away after a mile or so. maybe the GU that i took at our water stop at mile 4 finally kicked in. mile 7 brings us to the second water stop. we made it here in about 1:05. i was feeling very good at this point, knowing that we were more than halfway done. a 1-1/4 mile long hill west on US40 was next up. obviously i have driven this countless times, but again, this was the first time i'd ran it. and holybarnyardanimals, did this thing seem to never end. darrin started walking about 2/3 of the way up. afterwards, he told me he started to feel a little dizzy, so he thought it best to recover for a little while. i pulled away from him at this point, as i was still feeling ok. FINALLY, the turn to thorpe road came, and the road flattened out and actually went downhill for just a moment. this was plenty for me to recharge the legs. the two mile stretch of road that takes up back to our neighborhood resembles a rollercoaster. it is just constant up and down. none of them are all that long, but you are literally going up or down the entire time, and it starts to wear on you after a while. the turn into the neighborhood was a welcome sight, knowing there was only 300 yards or so to the end of my driveway, which signalled the end of the run. i crossed the line at 1:53:48. a 9:24 pace for just over 12 miles of constant hills?! awesome. honestly, i was sure this would take 2:00-2:15. i am beyond ecstatic with my time. i felt in control the whole time. darrin finished about 1:30 behind me, so he recovered nicely. he said he could have used another water stop. oh well. next time.

aside from some mild protesting from my legs, i feel great afterwards. the post-run whirlpool, which i was planning on taking, was eliminated because justin had a basketball game i needed to get to. the shower still felt good. as long as i'm still feeling good, i'll do 3 miles or so tomorrow just to see how the legs respond. it's about 11:00pm now, and there is a dull ache in my legs, but nothing unusual or serious. more than ever, now i'm looking forward to that 13.1 next weekend.