The Long Run: A 16 mile tale of woe

When I woke up at 4 a.m. to fit in 16 miles before having to be at work at 9 a.m. and it was pouring I should have just taken it as a sign and gone back to bed but when your coach expects  you to run (I have a coach now, did I not tell you, more on that later) you just kind of suck it up and run. Under pressure. Well after obsessively checking the weather and waiting for it to let up. Phone app said I should be fine. I was not fine......

In my genius little brain a t-shirt and shorts seemed the best bet. That way if it did rain not a lot of clothing to get wet and weigh me down. You know what happens to shorts when they get soaking wet during mile 1, an insane amount of chaffing for the next 15 miles. Good thing it was raining because my thigh chaffing very well might have started a forest fire. Oh god it hurts so bad.

So the weather app can suck it. It rained off and on the whole way. Well until the last five miles where it just pretty much poured and thundered and lightening and I was so very, very pissed that I like running and do this for fun. Of course this was after the encounter with the alligator and the stomach issues.

Oh the alligator, yes it was just chilling near the running path near these creepy lagoon ponds about 6 miles into the run. It launched itself into the water when I ran by and almost killed me due to the cardiac arrest I almost went into. And I have no fight or flight response whatsoever. This is my second encounter with an animal that could eat me for breakfast (the first was a bear, well and then there was the show down with the moose that one time...so three maybe) and I just stand there waiting to be eaten.  Don't worry I won't ask you to team up during the zombie apocalypse. I will just let them eat me.

After the alligator but before the turn around point of this lovely little jaunt my stomach revolted.....luckily I was in the woods.....and luckily nothing tried to eat me. Not my proudest moment. Good god is this run over yet.

No only 8 more miles to go. As the incredible amount of chaffing and rain continued at mile 12 I was supposed to launch myself from my laid back pace of around 11 minute miles to 9:40 for the last four. That did not happen. I did drop down to about a 10 minute per mile pace but anything fast was beyond my defeatist attitude. And the last mile as it poured and I froze and sloshed through giant puddles in my brand new shoes, well I just kind of gave up.

But I did go for a 16 mile run in the rain in 2 hours and 55 minutes after a 39 mile training week. The longest run since the Chicago marathon in October so I don't feel too horrible about that performance.

55 miles this week. Training is on! And I am oh so happy about not running tomorrow.

Comments

  1. Well this just sounds like a whole lot of suck. I don't know whether to congratulate you or shake my head at you. I'm hope your chafing settles down soon!

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  2. Somehow I never commented on this. But WOW AN ALLIGATOR! Utterly terrifying. But if it's any comfort, the Dude was enormously impressed!

    ReplyDelete

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