And the Beat Goes On

I wish I had kept the article, by 6:00 p.m. Thursday evening it had poured in excess 35mm and it wasn’t letting up. Needless to say, as I peered out onto the darkened street on Friday morning the relentless hammering of the rain did little to bolster my waning desire. It was going to be one of those days. I gently closed the door behind me and after fastening my backpack, took a tentative first step out into the shadows only to repeat the process eight hours later. Day two of my new program and I was already being tested.

Saturday morning saw almost dozen of us arrive at Beacon Hill for our inaugural group session. We traced out a mile loop using most of the old CIS XC circuit and after a few strides began the workout. The idea was to build within each repeat as well as throughout the practice. As my immediate goal was to finish the workout I had to leave my ego at the door and for the most part run on my own. Oh to be able to run strong again. I managed to keep a reasonable rhythm but suffered on even the slight inclines.

Sunday was full of leaf strewn rural roads, soft west coast trails under towering canopies and hills, many hills. The route, a new favourite, will do well to prepare me for Boston but I’m going to have to be careful not to dig myself a hole in November. I was out with three stronger runners and although they looped back on several occasions there is a difference between pushing the pace and too much.

Training:
Friday: A.M. easy 34:09, P.M. easy 28:52
Saturday: 1:18:26 with 3x10’ tempo (2’)
Sunday: undulating 1:40:04

Weekly mileage: 6h43’44”, 94-k or 59 miles