And She Runs...

Finally...after a month of pissing and moaning about not running, I did a "real" run this morning with the track club. (Real in that it was outdoors, on the road, not indoors on the 'mill). It was a nice morning for a run, foggy, a bit muggy, but relatively cool.

When I got there, I saw Irene, who gave me a big hug and welcomed me back. Then a few minutes later, Alberta showed up telling me how she'd made it from Pacific Beach to Balboa Park in about 15 minutes.

The club route was 8 miles this morning and included a couple miles on some of the trails and paths in Balboa Park. I had pretty much decided that I would either walk the trails or just figure out a way to skip them.

Here's the track club route...

I typically wouldn't publish a track club maps, but I figure since this is also the same route as next week's Balboa 8 miler, it'd be OK. See all those dashed lines? Those are trails.

My route was somewhat different...

(This is a screen shot of my route from Garmin Connect...Oh I love Garmin Connect now...it is so pretty! If you are truly interested in my run, you can check out all the stats here)

Yeah, I took about five steps onto the 2nd trail. It was a pretty steep downhill path. My foot twisted a little bit and I IMMEDIATELY felt it. So I turned around and decided to stay on paved roads and asphalt.

Highlights from the run

• I managed 5.5 miles and averaged about a 12 minute mile pace (which includes a really slow mile when I was on the first trail and walked a bit...and also includes me looking for an unlocked restroom).
• Note to self...public restrooms in Balboa Park are not unlocked until 8am. We started at 6:30am.
• I might have run faster had I not had locate an unlocked restroom.
• Minimal tenderness in the foot while running...mostly toward the end of the run.
• Only noticed the knee when I was running downhill. (Not a good thing really since the first 5 miles of the AFC included some pretty steep descents, but manageable today).
• At 5.5 miles, I stopped running, but I felt like I could have run more.
• So happy that I haven't lost too much in the way of cardio-fitness. I guess all that biking and the little bit of swimming I did paid off!
• Chatting with Alberta about her wolf-man arms. Apparently several weeks in a cast stimulates hair growth, so she now has one hairy arm. (Nair babee, Nair!).
• Edith overslept and missed the run.
• Seeing what must have been some Comic-con goers on their way to/from the festivities, in costume.
• Wondering why that dude was hanging around outside the woman's restroom? Creeped me out!
• I might have run slower if not for that dude.
• I was runnnnnninnnngggg

About that bike ride...

Several of you wondered why I didn't do the trek around Tahoe with Betty and Mik. It's not a particularly interesting story, but I just couldn't swing the trip to Tahoe this summer, with teaching summer school, kids, their vacations, and oh yeah, I left Walter (who is a saint) with the kids for a week already this summer.

Yes, I am bummed that I wasn't there. I hate it when I'm not at the party, no matter what the party is, or where.

Yes, I will go with them next time.

So.... I've got 21 days until AFC...

Hope you're all having a fabulous Saturday!