For the first time in months, I managed to get out for a run close to the time I had intended. Up at 0430 this morning, I managed to get everything sorted from a cold start (I didn't set my stuff up like normal last night -- was busy trying to get ready for my test this morning) and make it to our start point at the River Parks Ampetheater by a quarter of 6... Only 15 minutes late.
Temperatures were mild and in the upper 40s for my start, so I was able to dress a bit lighter. Headlamp in place and all set, I was off and going.
For some reason, I hadn't disarmed the alarm on my phone, so 5 minutes later, it went off to the tune of COPS, "Bad boys bad boys, whacha gonna do..." I figured what the heck and started running to the song. I took tiny steps so I'd be in synch witht he song and let the alarm go for a full minute, then slowed back to a walk and hit the snooze. 4 minutes ater, it went off again and I decided I'd just keep doing this as long as the alarm went off. The 4 minutes in between were good for my recovery, but the tiny strides didn't hurt me or get me going too fast.
I got through the first mile that way and really wasn't making a lot of time, hanging out at about the same pace as last week's 5 mile jaunt. But I also hadn't realy hit any hills yet. That was about to change. Now I have a saying that I came up with back when I first started running, and there is ony one person who knows the true origin of this saying... "Uphill is for running, downhill is for skiing." Well, today seemed no exception as my cell phone's alarm seemed to go off every time I was heading up a hill, even some of the monsters on today's course.
And so it was as I climbed away from Veteran's park and started mile 2. I suppose it is because of this that my stride changed significantly. I know this, not because I was aware of it at the time, but only after I crossed Mile 2, when I noticed that I had moved faster -- a lot faster, to the tune of 5 minutes. After a 33 minute first mile, I clocked only 28 minutes on the second mile! Even after stopping to have a bit of Gatorade and site for a minute. That felt good, but with me having to drive to OKC immediately after the run today, I figured I needed to make sure I had something left. So I slowed back down to my previous pace and carried on. I had half my nutrition just before mile 3 and was able to refill my empty bottle with some more Gatorade just after I rounded that turnaround.
On the way back, I was within of minute of my estimated times at various landmarks. Again, it was feeling pretty good. My legs were doing great, but at mile 5 my feet tried to carmp a little. Still, it was not bad and after a minute or so of stretching and finishing off my Nutrition bar, I was back off and headding back across the river. I am amazed at how much energy I had, even in the final stretch. I could tell, however, that my foot was starting to hurt and I was beginning to tire as my run sections got slower and sloppier. Coming down off the hill, I ran into the Couch to 5k group, Derek England leading them. I was in a run segment (one of only 2 on the entire course that was downhill) and was still able to say hi and talk for a minute. I stopped one last time for a quick break as I closed in on the Ampitheater. My foot was really talking to me and it just seemed prudent. But on the way to the bench, I was chatting with one of the C25k runners and just really enjoyed talking about running to her.
Finally, I made it back to the start and took a few minutes to relax and get some pretzels and some more Gatorade. Then I had to get going and move on home for a superquick change and grab my stuff for my test and drive over to OKC. I did better on the running than the test, but still managed to pass. Not nearly as happy with my score, but since they didn't send me my class materials until half way through the course, I guess I can let myself off the hook this time. Can't go back and change it anyway, so onward and upward.
***Didn't get any pics during this run, it was dark for a lot of it, anyway. But I'll drive by later and take a few handy shots of the route and update this blog later.***
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