Believe to Achieve

After yesterdays second SW of the week running a number of on/offs at a brisk pace my legs were not feeling the love today.  So plan was to run 20 miles VERY slowly (pretty much a RECOVERY RUN for 20 miles if there should be such a thing).  Turtle speed if  I wanted.  I thought about doing a five mile route 4 times so  I could stop and get fuel but somehow I managed to "run" away from that thought.  I ran a pretty tough hilly 20 miler starting out on 1100 north to Canyon road  and on up 600 west to the Farm Rd.  Even though I was running slow I was parched.  No water.  I hoped there would be a water left from our 20 miler last Saturday (no such luck).  My quads were sore from yesterday.  And  I know I was dehydrated and under fueled yesterday for this run as Troy was staining our banister for the basement and it made me psycho all day from the smell.     Headache and dizzy and moody.   I barely ate anything.  The smell in my kitchen (where he was staining) made me lose my appetite.  I would try to eat something and think it had metal in it or was moldy and would throw it out.  I felt like I was eating the stain.  During my run I could feel my lack of hydration but I am pretty strong and didn't need to stop until mile 12 (which ironically fell at the Eternal Fountain in Alpine, but I was running in the opposite direction).  I ran up Farm Rd to the top (steep grade) and on up the hills to the mouth of AF canyon and on to the trail to our water stop last week which was mile 16 then but mile 8 now.  Okay....so here's the thing....I was really going to stick to the easy/RECOVERY part-- never go under a 8:30 pace but it naturally occured and more so when a woman (I say woman because I am sure she was as old as I) passed me and nodded.  I didn't want to be competitive but  I was running rather slow.  Well I certainly couldn't let her think I was out running some 5 miler slowly....so I kept up behind and funny as it was she was running the same direction into Alpine and up those hills (close to Healey Dr.).  I chose to avoid Healey Hills since I was overdoing it anyway but took the next road north which headed East over to the same road Healey connects with.  It was very scenic.  I ran the exact course of our miles 12-14 in reverse.  It is funny how you notice different things in reverse.  On 300 north in Alpine I looked south at an intersection there and saw this AMAZING INCLINE OF A HILL!!!  Holy Flip  I said to myself... I was going to come back to it on RESTED legs I told myself.  And FRB is thankful  I did NOT put that on our 20 miler.  It was like Heartbreak hill x 4!!!!  I got to the eternal water thankful for my first STOP in the run.   I tried hard to suck water from the dripping fountain-- where is the pressure??? oh the pipe is leaking.     Oh well.  I got maybe 4 ounces.  It was like sipping through a tiny straw.  I then headed south and took the circle veering to the right and headed down Alpine Highway but adding on through a neighborhood there.  I was getting really hungry.  LOW AND BEHOLD MY WATER I left at mile 4  at  last week 20miler was still at the stop sign.  I am sure no one picks up garbage there so it was safe to assume it could be there and it was!!! I gulped and gulped.  There was a guy running and had stopped at that exact corner to rest.  I told him--- with exuberance how happy I was my water from last week was still there!!  Oh the joys of long runs alone!!  I never pushed the pace except very briefly when that woman passed me.  She disappeared up another hillside that would add too much on my run.  No way was I heading UP again.   I never spoke to her but she kept looking over her shoulder at me.  Probably in surprise since she flew by me initially.  Oh at mile 3 I saw my neighbors walking up the hill I was running.  Sorry.  They do however know I am an insane runner.   In fact I asked if the water was working at the park they were turning into and she said "probably not but you probably need some for your insane 20 miles".   She didn't know  I was running 20 today but she KNOWS me all too well.  AP a nice recovery/slow pace of 8:21.  First mile 9:02.  Last mile 8:06.  Only two miles in the high 7s do to that woman!! Do you know how hard it is to ice yourself in your shower??? Brr.......!!  BTW my foot and ankle killed the first two miles of this run.   I almost turned for home the first 1/4 mile of my run thinking  I wouldn't be able to make it.  It hurt all day yesterday.  Will I take time off??  When my ankle falls off.