2.15.09

Starting off this week with a three hour run seems to be good. The calf was a lot better and the legs were nice and fresh. This run felt great until about 20 miles or so in. That's when the fatigue really started to set into my calves and hams, and also happened to be where there are a lot of hills to drag up. The first part of the run went fine. It was 46 degrees and sunny, but as the clouds started thickening the sun was blotted out and it made the wind a lot colder. I only had a t-shirt with a cut off under it so my arms were freezing the majority of this run. It was nice to be relatively comfortable though and although it was cold, it kept me cool and so I didn't sweat much if at all.

I didn't take any stops this run, nor did I take water or snack. It was just a full out run. I don't even think I had to pause for traffic once (although I did have to slow down or speed up accordingly). The worst part of the run was being called a name by some teenagers/guys in a car that was driving by about a minute into my run. It's a shame how ignorant people can be these days. I tried to forget about, and it wasn't too hard because I knew I had 25 miles left to cover.

The last two miles I really picked up the pace and tried to get in under 3 hours. I was close, but just didn't have enough left in me. It was good to get some speedwork on the long run, and I couldn't help but hope I felt this good in a month and a half at the marathon. I think speedwork is paying off. My last few runs I haven't been breathing hard at all, even on this run 20+ miles I wasn't breathing hard until I started burning off those last two miles. It was just a nice comfortable pace, and even the legs felt really good with all the hills. I'm confident at this point, but I know how hard the distance is and I just hope I can cover it at my goal pace. Okay I'm gonna get some rest, later.

3:45pm. ball camp to vanosdale. 46 degrees 7-8mph wind.
3:01:34, gm 892