2:45:33 (8:16AP). I was running running at about 9 min/mile, or even slower, the first 8-9 miles (headwind, my legs are dead, I had a rough night sleep-wise). I did not have mile markers for all of my miles, but my last 2 with mile markers (about 2 miles from the turn-around, were 8:55 pace). Then, after 12 miles I picked it up, had a mile marker 6 miles out (14:56 for two miles, 7:28 pace -- no wonder it felt hard!), then the next 4 were 7:35, 7:34, 7:32, 7:16. It was 81F when I finished -- and 2PM!!! Talk about carbo depletion ;-). So, we went out to dinner with some friends last night -- it was great fun, and we were home by 8:30! We watched a movie and were in bed by 10:30 (yes, we are old fogies). Then, around midnight the fireworks started and one of our dogs Jake freaked out. He can open doors and opened our bedroom door!! He is just a baby, he is a hound dog (we got him in Tennessee -- he showed up on our door one day) and we have always thought that his old owners kicked him out because he is such a horrible hunting dog (afraid of fireworks, likely guns as well). Well, I tried to get him to calm down in the living room, but he kept coming into the bedroom, so finally at about 1:30AM we just let him stay in the bedroom. But, it was a comedy of errors with me blindly trying to get him out into the living room only to have him slink back up the hall, I stepped on a broken dog bone and cut my foot, tried to catch the cat as she also ran into the bedroom ;-) ... so, after all that, I did not get back to sleep until nearly 2-3 AM. I was tired this morning -- plus, my sinus infection is hanging on for dear life and I swear, the last 8 miles of this run I had snot pouring down my face (I did not care ;-) ). Oh well, last 20 miler done ... now I just have to stay healthy ;-) ... and make it to the line. I am a little freaked out, not just about the race (though there is that too), but I am actually having to make a business trip the Monday/Tuesday before the race -- a trans-continential flight from Tucson to Philadelphia -- very little sleep those two days, the first day of the semester is the Wednesday after the trip (early class) -- also my last workout -- and then a flight out to Houston on Friday ... oh boy there it is going to take a lot of vitamin C not to get sick that week ;-). Well, the New Year has begun. I hope you are all enjoying it! Happy 2012!!!! | 