I ran the first 9.5 with my brother who is training for his first marathon. He is becoming a much faster runner than when he started running regularly about 2 years ago. We kept around 9:00/mi and he was doing 18 because his marathon is still about a month away and mine is only 2 weeks from tomorrow, so I split off after 9.5 to do the last 3.5 by myself. I picked up the pace to about 8:30/mi, and the last 1.5 mi I wanted to do a fast finish so I dropped to a 7:30/mi when I was running on the sidewalk. There was loose sand for about 0.15mi where the sidewalk was being repaired and I had to slow down to cross the street and run up a hill so I ended up doing the last 1.5 in a 7:50/mi pace.
This was my last long run before the first marathon of the two. Now I start my taper and cutting out alcohol (except on New Years Eve and New Years I will be in Biloxi and then New Orleans for the Sugar Bowl to watch Tebow play his last game with the Gators) I will try to only have a couple though. | 