Notes
I've gotten the runs and the workouts in. I haven't enjoyed it as much.... This is a running log so I'll not make it a personal diary.
No intention of running Derry this year. I had registered a long time ago but Joe was tied up this weekend and I just didn't want to go myself. Planned for a long run today in town that would simulate the hills on some level. To make a long story short,, Joe stated he was driving me to Derry in the morning and would got into work at 5 pm when he got back and it wasn't up for discussion. He knows me well and as much as I actually didn't want to go to the race, it would certainly be easier on some level to run 16 hilly miles in that atmosphere than on a simulated course by myself. I wasn't planning to run it as a race, just a supported long run in base building stage.
Temps were supposed to be 16 degrees and sunny which is cold but much better than what I've been running in. LIES. It was 9 degrees with a windchill of -3 degrees at the start and they warned us that the wind would pick up a lot in an hour and to be sure we were dressed appropriately. I was dressed fine. No issues with my body but my hands were already freezing even in my gloves waiting for the start. I literally kept sticking them down the front of my tights to get warm on my legs.....I have so much trouble right now with the circulation in my hands and feet.
8:17 175 feet of gain in the first mile. Didn't notice this at all actually-just wanted to start moving to try to warm up my hands
7:41
7:16-dowhill which generally I love but my glutes were SO sore on the downhills. Should not have done leg weights. My face was literally wincing on every step
7:34
10:38.
(Saw Joe in this mile. I had to stop and have him run back to the car where he was parked down the road and get his leather deer hunting mittens. I thought I could get away with my Arcteryx gloves with hand warmers but no way I was going to complete 16 miles with any fingers left).
7:48
8:04
7:57
8:14. This mile started the harder part of the race and a 25 mph headwind NW so literally the last 8 miles of the race into headwind
8:43. 138 gain. I took a few walk breaks in the next 3 miles. These hills felt steep at this point in the run. Nothing like anything in Boston. I also didn't have much "race adrenaline" That being said I actually ran them fairly hard when I wasn't walking...I was basically doing whatever the woman next to me did....lol
8:47- 168 gain
8:45. - 153 gain
8:22- Just when the hills were over the headwind got even worse. I can't wear anything on my face like most people who were covered and it was burning my face and my lungs. I was handling the cold OK but the wind I HATED in this portion
8:22
8:15
7:13
.08. (7:10)
All in all- I'm happy I got it done! 1280 feet of gain. My face is red and windburnt and my lungs are actually sore although my HR stayed right between 140-142. My legs were good but pretty fatigued from the start. I've asked a lot of them to go from very little to a lot more in the last 3 weeks. I ran it a little slower on the clock than last year which was the same effort as a training run but my mile splits were faster and my moving time faster because of the stop in mile 5. Much tougher conditions this year and all I really wanted was to get in 16 miles this weekend so I'm really happy I did.