Met Smooth, Kathy, Karen, Teena Marie, and their friend Matt way up off 7200 South at a part of the Jordan River Parkway I'd never been before. I hadn't seen Kathy since we started out at the Boston Marathon together last year! She ran up with Teena like a champ--she's going to rock Boston again. Smooth was pretty bad when we got there, she could hardly breathe but a hit of the inhaler at mile 6, and a naproxin 7 miles later... I was cheering her on from about a mile back. I thought I might only go 15 to 18 but the turn around point on the far North gets into some pretty seedy WVC territory: A stoner and flasher's paradise, the back of a prison, and a criminal youth facility where boys with teardrop and neck tatoos play basketball while a huge supervisor looks on to make sure no one jumps the chain link fence. The further north we ran, the creepier the bike riders became (they carried their dirty garbagy looking stuff in baskets, had wobbely wheels, and looked generally like thugs on stolen bikes). I stayed close until about 17 when the Alieve I gave Smooth kicked in and she no longer held back in the low 10's. Karen tried to say with me, but eventually toward 18 she got a good lead and I walked a few 10'ths for mile 18 and 19. I finished the last .5 ok, but I was in a lot of pain. Finishing up, even in pain, was pretty sweet though. I've hardly run on the ground except on Saturdays and the week before last I put down that 20 in the snow and on the treadmill. I just kicked my butt. So last week and this week, even though I was the last one coming round the corner....I did it. I have no idea how this will translate to DC Particularly since I really should have run 20 last week, and 15 this week then 8 next week (for a 3 week taper). I've had 2 20 mile runs, and 2 50+ mile weeks in the last month. I can only hope that will help me get the job done on the 26th. Now I'm going up to Sundance to help my BIL with some chores at the cabin. I wonder how the snow is holding up on the back mountain. AP 10:08 (I only ran the first 13 with any grace). | 