Yesterday I thought I would do a double loop on the Flag Rock Race course. Last night I found out that we were tending a bunch of little girls over night and my wife needed me to watch them so she could go get a hair cut. Consequently, my plans were not to be. Instead I just did a single loop, which in the end was probably the best because I was done by the end. My exhaustion had me a little frustrated, because I couldn't figure out why I was so tired. I slept well last night, I ate before I ran today. I didn't get up as early (thanks to the little girls), so what gives? As it turns out, the reason for my exhaustion was my speed up to the top. While my overall time was 2 minutes slower than my fastest time on this route, I beat my time to the top by about 10 seconds. Most of that speed came in the third mile, a mile that is usually an 18 minute mile because there is just under 800' of elevation gain in that mile. Today I managed to get that mile done in 16:57, 1 minute and 9 seconds faster than my fastest time. I lost most of that back on the final switchbacks up to the top, but I am pretty happy with that speed. My first and second miles were faster too, but the speed difference isn't quite as dramatic. In the end, today was a good sign for my goal of 1:05 by july 14. | 