I watched one hour of Maangchi before the run but that
didn't help ;-) The weather was perfect. At 7:00am, it was
still cool. I kept a moderate pace. The goal was a longer
distance instead of higher speeds. I wanted to be able
to run 15 miles.
The first several flat miles were great. The hilly 3 miles
afterward were not. I had a few sips at around mile 6.
Getting back onto the levee, I started to slow down. I
finished weak and it took me 9:24 to run the last mile!
Forced slow runs are always tough, as I have found out
during my 10-month running experiments. The fast miles
are usually pleasant and, if the runner is properly
conditioned, quite enjoyable. Pushing boundaries and
trying new things, however, often require extra patience
and stamina. But those are not enough, either. At some
point pushing may result in setbacks, as my recent injury
in weight training can attest. One has to take all these
into account and keep the faith that the obstacle really
IS the way.
One positive thing was that my calves seemed to have
improved. They didn't complain much over the whole course.
Was this the beginning of the end for my BFT acclimation?
Overall, I ran 14 miles at a pace of 8:36/mile.
