What a morning. Ended up being a good run but I really had to force myself out the door. It rained all night long and the wind was consistent at 15-20 MPH. I just didn't feel like battling the elements for 2+ hours. Eventually got out the door just after 7 and it rained for the first 60 minutes. I was drenched within 5 minutes and just tried to keep a positive outlook for the first section (although truth be told, I was trying to decide if cutting the run short after 5 miles would be worth it...). Anyway, I'll have to name this course '3 up 3 down' or something like that. Tried to pound my legs a bit and I was successful. Ran up 7th street to Anderson dental (about 6 miles), then back into town via Highland Ave to the Farmers Market. Quick bathroom stop and then back up again to Club NW and once again back into town to Expert Tire. Final climb up 9th street (past the HS) to Hillcrest and back down on Beacon. From the top of Beacon, I could barely see Fred Meyer/McDonalds. I made me feel like I was hundreds of feet above them....and I guess I was. It was a 300 ft drop in just under 1.5 miles. Yikes. Total climbing was 1133 ft for the run. Ran 20 miles in 6:33/average and then 1 mile cool down in just under 9 minutes. Feeling like I finished my week on a positive note. | 