Saturday, August 20, 2005

Tahoe Triple Training - Twenty, Twenty, Twenty

Today was day three of my attempt at three long runs in three consecutive days to prepare (the will to win is nothing without the will to prepare) for the Tahoe Triple. Thursday and Friday were good; today was very good. It helped to run with friends. Training partners Dave and Andy accompanied me for today's sojourn on the towpath from Station Road Bridge to Hunt Farm (exactly ten miles) and back. It was warm and sunny, but cooler and shadier there in the Cuyahoga River Valley. Every little bit helps.

After making a few water stops, we reached Hunt Farm in 1:22. Picking it up just a bit ("Dan, are you varying your pace?") after the turnaround, we ran the second half in 1:17:30 to finish in 2:39:30. The last two miles were among my fastest, partially because I was trying, unsuccessfully, to keep up with Dave, who had originally asked that pace question.

Yes, I'm a bit beat up right now. But not much more than after a usual long run. Seven weeks to go, and I feel like I'm as ready as I can be at this point. I'll have to think of some new torture ideas between now and October.

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