You might just want to skip the crap I typed between the breaks. Might be easier on your brain.
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Not sure if this was a nice long run or if it was just a long run. Parts of it were wonderful, parts of it horrible, but overall, it was pretty nice. I got lost and found again. I ventured into the unknown only to find the known. It was deep and shallow. Cloudy and clear.
Yeah. Gibberish. I know. My mind is a bit blurry at the moment but I feel good. Not quite as hazy as some of my longer runs so I guess I'm more numb than dumb. Anyway, enough blather. Today's run started from my wife's school. She brought home a jungle's worth of plants over the holidays so today we took them back to her room since the weather was nice. And boy was it nice. I guess I should back up even more.
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Okay, clean start. Today started with an early alarm and not enough sleep. I had to get lab work done this morning and I am terrified of needles. Absolutely terrified. Terrified. So I was nervous all night. So not enough sleep. And the labs required fasting so I didn't have coffee or breakfast before I left so I was even crabbier. Once at the lab site I was lucky enough to have a great phlebotomist that listened to what I had to say and did a great job making it as painless as possible. You see, I'm nervous enough about needles that I know I need to chug water before the test, that I have small veins and need the black needle (the pediatric one), and that my right arm does the best at giving up blood. Yeah.
After that, we got breakfast, a haircut, groceries, lunch, then back home. I was amazed that we made it home, had the groceries unloaded, and were damn near close to leaving again by 1300 (that's 1 pm). We dropped off the plants at school and my wife and kids rode their bikes while I headed out for my run.
From the school I headed towards the old elementary school and down Millbank Road. I've never run on this road and found it to be a bit hairy in the early sections but later it straightened out later. I took a side road, Powhatan, down to Port Conway. For those in the know, this is Dogue. For those not in the know, it's pronounced DOE-g. As in the word "doe" and the sound "g" makes. This was where I got lost. I knew where Millbank went but had no idea where Powhatan went. Until I saw the stop sign that I turned around at. Then I knew where I was and knew I needed to high-tail it back home before it got dark. Yep. I forgot about sunset being so early.
So I doubled back on Powhatan, ran down Millbank to Gera. I knew Gera would take me to the mid-way point on my usual YMCA route and that would spit me out at the Sheetz. And the Sheetz would be a great place to pick up fluids and it was only 4 miles from home. Once there, I was in the home stretch.
As I got close to home, I took a side road to tack on some more miles because I was feeling so good. Might pay for it later but screw it. I was high on life and going for it. I knew I'd be over 13.1 if I just went home but I ended up with nearly 16 miles in the end so I think I made out pretty good.
Weather:
Temps were 65F to 70F when I started but chilled a bit at the very end to maybe 60F. Clouds were out in force but there were some openings for the sun every now and then. There was a light breeze here and there.
Aches and Pains:
My knees started to hurt after about 10 miles which makes me think my shoes are about ready to retire. My right quad cramped a bit around mile 5 which told me I needed to ramp up my fluids and electrolytes. Once I did that it settled down until the very end. My right calf (that outside portion that's like the ITB) locked up a few times at the very end. And my left calf (the regular part) hurts now.
Gear:
No fancy gear. Took my Nathan HPL 020 and one Amphipod bottle. It worked out fine to haul water in the Natahn and my Hammer Fizz in my bottle. It would have been nice to have more electrolyte drink along the way but it was doable.
Fluids and Fuel:
I pounded a good quart of water before my lab work. Breakfast was a power sandwich and souffle at Panera along with iced coffee. Lunch was half a roast beef and asiago sandwich and half a cinnamon crunch bagel from Panera along with iced tea. Right before my run I had half a bottle of Gatorade. During my run I had half a plain bagel during the first few miles. I took two small bottles of Hammer gel and finished them both. I'd say there was about 4 to 6 servings total. I also finished two bottles of Hammer Fizz. And I had about a liter and a half of plain water. I had to pee three times so I think I did a decent job hydrating. I need to increase my electrolyte intake a bit though, especially towards the later parts. I also had a small can of Starbucks double espresso at mile 10. That shit was like rocket fuel and was directly responsible for me feeling so damn good at the end. With the gels, I learned two things. First, I need them about every half hour for the first hour to hour and a half then about every 20 minutes after that. I also learned that I can suck some water into my mouth and backwash it into my gel flask to rinse out the last little bits of gel in there. Sounds gross but if you really want some more fuel, it's an easy way to get the dregs.
Codename - Teach me how to dougie
Lame play on words, I know but I was very surprised to see where I was in my run today. That was part of the joy though, not knowing where I was or where I'd end up. I had a preset time limit that I needed to follow and I was edging close to it when I saw the stop sign way ahead of me. So when I saw it, I knew I'd make it there and turn around. I just didn't expect to be there.
Throwing the Lumberjack gang sign in Dogue:
Splits:
Splits are from RunKeeper and may not be entirely accurate.
Mile 1 - 10:32
Mile 2 - 10:40
Mile 3 - 12:36 (includes pee break)
Mile 4 - 10:55
Mile 5 - 12:18
Mile 6 - 11:10
Mile 7 - 12:17 (includes pee break)
Mile 8 - 11:58
Mile 9 - 11:41
Mile 10 - 14:39 (includes pee break and stopping at Sheetz)
Mile 11 - 10:29
Mile 12 - 11:26
Mile 13 - 10:49
Mile 14 - 10:05
Mile 15 - 10:52
Finish - 3:00:29
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