Recap

During the national anthem before the race, two jets flew overhead, ripping the sky open. It was spectacular. According to Paul, that's the sound of freedom. A good way to start. The weather was sunny and warm, but favorable considering the previous day the marathon's medical director issued a red flag warning indicating a high risk of heat stress. "Slow your pace. There will be other races." Thanks for the positive message. The conditions could have been worse. Higher humidity, thrashing thunderstorms, a wind from the south. Thankfully this wasn't the case. Unfortunately, the cloud cover did not roll in until we were in Duluth and the intense sun took a toll over the first 18 miles. I felt good from the beginning. Effortless. Light. This is always the goal. The magic of the taper evidently worked. I locked into a steady pace next to one of the elite women and the miles clicked by. At 15 there was a hint of fatigue. I was hoping it wouldn't appear that early. At 18 I knew things were going to be difficult. All of Duluth was a struggle. Lonely, long London Road. Then Lemon Drop Hill to slow me down. Then I got sloppy on the downhill into downtown. Arms all over the place. Staring at the ground. A little minor weaving. Thoughts of walking entered my head. Two miles to eternity. Pick them up, put them down. Pick them up, put them down. Could I walk and be satisfied. As my Congress of neurons deliberated, the finish line got closer, but rather slowly. I was grinding to a halt. The circuitous last mile and elusive finish line were not helping. In the end, I can say with confidence I could not have gone much faster. Maybe a few seconds. But I was wobbly and almost a little light-headed. There was nothing left. It hurt. Bad. Of course, it is always possible to go faster. Another day. Different weather. A better last month of training. Perhaps a little more conservative pacing. A few things here and there. These possibilities instill a restlessness, one that can only be calmed temporarily by mass quantities of meat and beer. So, that's the race. The best part was hanging out with peeps. The next step is to pool our collective knowledge for our pre-race seminar at a future marathon expo. Most people don't know about the marathon hierarchy of goals. Many more have never seen or heard of the Ukrainian shuffle.

Splits

1. 6:10
2. 6:09
3. 6:04
4. 6:13
5. 6:13
6. 6:05
7. 6:09
8. 6:10
9. 6:08
10. 6:01
11. 6:13
12. 6:06
13. 6:06
14. 6:06
15. 6:03
16. 6:08
17. 6:09
18. 6:13
19. 6:06
20. 6:29
21. 6:29
22. 6:29
23. 6:32
24. 6:47
25. 6:37
26. 7:04

0.2 at 1:23

Total: 2:44:36

On the Road Again

The fourth phase of the JD plan has coincided with work related travel to some challenging locations. New Orleans (hot and humid), Newark (no good places to run), and Phoenix (110 degrees, bone dry, and nowhere to run from downtown). Its hard enough to find time to run while traveling -- and the weather and lack of routes saps all motivation to try. As a result, I missed a few days of running over the past month (although only one workout). The weather at home has also been less than optimal. The last 15-mile marathon pace workout was on 80 degree and humid day. I barely managed to run 7:05 pace. Overall, I've been feeling inconsistent down the home stretch. Also, I have a few little annoying aches that have decided now is the time to make themselves know. OK, enough whining. Let's hope that everything clicks next Saturday.

Banana Slug

Couldn't even do the 3x1 tempo yesterday. My tempo pace is rapidly approaching my easy run pace. I think I may be a little fatigued. Other causes may include gaining 50 pounds or giving blood multiple times. Come on taper!

Updated Running Diary

Dates	Week	Total Miles	Avg Pace	Notes
8/21 - 8/27	1	19.65	7:52
8/28 - 9/3	2	16.92	7:50
9/4 - 9/10	3	24.03	7:47
9/11 - 9/17	4	23	7:32
9/18 - 9/24	5	29.56	7:39
9/25 - 10/1	6	38.5	7:43
10/2 - 10/8	7	30.05	7:29
10/9 - 10/15	8	34	7:31
10/16 - 10/22	9	40.25	7:21
10/23 - 10/29	10	44.31	7:45
10/30 - 11/5	11	34	7:21
11/6 - 11/12	12	44.14	7:34
11/13 - 11/19	13	45.04	7:28
11/20 - 11/26	14	46.27	7:28
11/27 - 12/3	15	50.05	7:30
12/4 - 12/10	16	15.11	7:13
12/11 - 12/17	17	15.19	7:25
12/18 - 12/24	18	38.17	7:10
12/25 - 12/31	19	38.43	7:33
12/31 - 1/6	1	45.51	7:36
1/7 - 1/13	2	45.07	7:21
1/14 - 1/20	3	53.11	7:25
1/21 - 1/27	4	53.17	7:32
1/28 - 2/3	5	53.12	7:35
2/4 - 2/10	6	45.01	7:24
2/11 - 2/17	7	57.03	7:23
2/18 - 2/24	8	58.38	7:21	1st workout. Got sick afterwards. Failed 2nd workout.
2/25 - 3/2	9	46.32	7:30	O workouts. Basically took 2 days off.
3/3 - 3/9	10	68.26	7:31	1 workout. Went well, but was slower than 1st workout.
3/10 - 3/16	11	68.36	7:11	2 workouts. Both went well.  Feeling better again.
3/17 - 3/23	12	55.16	7:10	2 workouts. Both went well again. Starting to believe.
3/24 - 3/30	13	75.05	7:34	1 long run & 1 workout. Both awesome. Feeling good overall.
3/31 - 4/6	14	68.51	7:15	2 workouts. Both went well.
4/7 - 4/13	15	25.7	7:12	1 workout. Very sick for 5 days. 1st (M pace) workout was okay.
4/14 - 4/20	16	60.09	7:43	1 workout. Not good. Slowly recovering from my cold.
4/21 - 4/27	17	68	7:20	2 workouts. Better overall, but still not where I want to be.
4/28 - 5/4	18	53.62	7:19	2 workouts. Some of the worst overall. Feeling burnt out.
5/5 - 5/11	19	75.06	7:27	1 workout. This sucks.
5/12 - 5/18	20	60.66	7:19	2 workouts. 1 was a mistake, the other went well enough.
5/19 - 5/25	21	53.03	7:31	1 long run (terrible) & 1 workout. Best workout since Easter.
5/26 - 6/1	22	51.01	6:57	2 workouts. Awesome week overall.
6/2 - 6/8	23	44.92	7:20	2 workouts. Better than most, just not as good as last week.

Pride

So I was running errands on Sunday. Propane for the grill, a few ingredients at el supermercado, a stop at The Hub to look for kid's bike, shoes at Run N Fun. I knew exactly the shoes I wanted, the same as I have now: the New Balance MR10, size 11. Eleven is a popular size. She brought out the box and hesitantly said "We only have one pair left." She opened the box. "And it's rainbow." I said wow, thought for a second, and said "I have pride." She said "You go rock it!" End of story. Here they are.