The Hills Are Alive... [Entered 3/13]

Saturday, Gilbert told Alex, Frank, Richard and I that we should do Bonnell for 13-14 miles instead of the 7-10 miles that everyone not doing a spring marathon was doing. It was a bit of a jump from the 7 mile run last week, but hey, we just ran a marathon a few weeks ago, right? This was the end of my first Gazelles week since Freescale, but I was feeling just fine. Weather was muggy and low 70's, not awful, but not great, either. Jennifer, Richard, Liliana and Brenna joined me for our pace group for the run this morning. Volel ran ahead with Frank and Alex.

Off we went. It was actually light enough to see, even at 6:00, so we had fun just cruising along, chatting away. We stayed together to the boat docks at the lake, where we tried to get a drink of water, but the water at the docks was turned off. Schade. We picked it back up, and found another group's water cooler on Scenic Road, so due to the situation, we took advantage of that and grabbed a quick drink there. So far, we were having fun, but the course was turning hilly.

Splits: 9:46, 9:34, 9:25, 9:15, 9:45 (for .72 miles). 4.8 miles, 9:32 overall pace. Relaxed return to long running, I'd say. 1:22 water stop.

The hillier section that led up to Bonnell and that climb was fun, but once we hit Pecos, I started to pull away a little. Liliana turned back at Pecos for her 10 mile planned run. I was alone going to Bonnell and up the long climb, but I just set a steady pace, and actually enjoyed it a little bit. While I waited at the cooler, sipping Powerade and taking a GU, I chatted with Frank, who was headed back down the hill with Anne. Once we regrouped on top of Bonnell, it was time to get going. I was having fun now.

Splits 9:18, 8:48, and a quarter mile up Bonnell at 9:30/mile. 7 mile total, average pace down to 9:24/mile. I ended up spending just over 5 minutes waiting on everyone to get up the hill and regroup, but for the company, it was time well spent.

Over to Balcones Woods, down to 35th, up that hill to Exposition, and then it was time to roll up and down Exposition to the Powerade stop at O. Henry school. I was alone again by then, after having picked it up considerably on Exposition. It's the kind of terrain that I suppose I do well on, resembling the Decker course. As I was leaving, the other guys had arrived for their water stop, but I went on to finish alone. I did another GU there, just for fun, along with the Powerade.

Splits 9:09, 9:20, 8:20, and .42 miles at 8:20. Overall, 10.3 miles at 9:13/mile. I didn't know if I had a "fast finish" in me, but I just ran how I felt from there.

Down to the trail again, I was feeling good. I wasn't blasting it or anything, but I wasn't loafing, either. There was some crowding on the trail, but nothing we haven't dealt with before. I rolled to the finish at Auditorium Shores feeling pretty satisfied with my day. A quick cup of water or two, and a brief dunking under the outdoor shower, and I was rejuvenated. It was warmer than it seemed, and we're still not acclimated to it yet.

Splits 8:15, 8:17, 1.25 miles at 8:27 to finish. Overall, 13.5 miles at exactly 9:00/mile pace, running time. With the water stop time included, pace dropped to 9:41/mile, but it's entirely okay with me. A good run.

I did only 3 x 100m striders, and then we had the big stretch-o-rama on the grass there at Auditorium Shores. It was all good natured fun, and the day was done. I'm happy with how I did today, and I'm looking forward to the rest of Indy training this spring.

For the week, I'm up to 31 miles. Next week, I'll add the Tuesday recovery run back in now that the post-marathon recovery period is done.