13.1 miles @ 9:36/mi (2:05:54)
I was hoping to get in 16 miles this morning, but we had a neighborhood cleanup scheduled for 8:30am. It was raining, and rain was forecast for the rest of the day, so I decided to go at 6:30am and just try to get in 13.1 miles again like last week.
I ran north on the canal trail. It's slightly downhill that direction, and as usual there was a tail wind, which I didn't really notice until I turned around. About 3.5 miles into my run I heard two voices talking behind me. They were gaining quickly so I hoped they were on bikes. They were not. It turns out one of them was Ron Greenwood. A 3rd runner running with and slightly behind them, told me the other one has one St. George 2 or 3 times. I didn't feel so bad that they passed me so easily.
I noticed there was a high ratio of quality runners out in the rain this morning. The thought crossed my mind that it wasn't coincidence. Real runners aren't stopped by a little cold rain.
I averaged 9:14 pace out, and 9:58 pace coming back. On the return trip the cold headwind seemed to get progressively stronger, the rain heavier, and my legs colder. I finished 6 minutes (about 30 sec/mile) slower than last week, but feel like I worked just as hard or harder.
My wet clothes felt heavy. I decided to weigh myself with and without them. They weighed 7.2 lbs. I'll have to weigh them when they are dry to see the difference.
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