Today was the usual easy 30 minutes on the trail (we got 3.2 miles), followed by striders (we got 8 of those), followed by the full stretching routine (we did that, too).
It was a nice and chilly morning, with temps in the crisp 38-40 degree range. We had but a small group today, but we enjoyed ourselves nonetheless. There was a good amount of discussion of tomorrow's Decker Challenge, as well as marvelling at the crazy and varied Texas weather. It should turn out to be almost perfect tomorrow for Decker, with the traditional north wind blowing in our faces about 10 mph for the first 2 miles or so.
Race Goals for Decker? Jan and Brad said I could only have one goal, so I'll go with shooting for a 7:50/mile average pace, or 1:37:20. That's a little slower than my McMillan number (1:36:58), but is a reasonable goal. Last year, I went exactly 8:00/mile pace for 1:39:24, which is my 20K lifetime PR. As always, I'll go out trying for a negative split (and we have a 10K mark on the course, so it will be exact), leaving my best miles for the last 2.4 miles. We'll see. It promised to be pretty cool, and it will be important to try not to fight the wind early in the race. After we turn that corner at mile 3 or so, the wind won't be as big of a deal the rest of the way. Decker has always been my favorite Challenge race, so I'm looking forward to it, whatever the conditions.
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Sweet! You not only beat your goal, but you also beat McMillan's prediction!
The fact that you were so close to your goal (though faster) means that you are really tuned in to what your body can do.
I'm looking forward to seeing what you can do in your next 26.2-mile race (especially now that you have finally cracked that elusive 4-hour barrier).
- Jason (logging in all the way from Seattle)
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