09/10/2005

Workout: long run 20mi.

With two more 20-mile runs on the schedule--including the race on 09/25--this would match my longest pre-marathon distance. Since we were heading out of town in the morning, I again faced the dilemma of "where and when" for this run. In the end, I decided that the lack of sunlight at 4:30/5am on the MVT was just too risky a proposition, considering a possible sprained ankle lurked at every turn. Instead I opted for the monotony of the TC Williams HS track. On the advice of Nick P., I reversed direction after each mile.

In truth it was only 18 miles on the track, since the run down to the high school is over a mile. I felt pretty good for the first 6 miles or so, but from mile 6 through 12, not so much. I began to feel fatigue in my legs, and a general sense of tiring quickly. Maybe it was the never-changing scenery, which at one point I realized I wasn't even observing, instead keeping my stare fixated about 10 feet in front of me on the track. But after mile 12, I felt a resurgence of energy and felt good thereafter, especially miles 16 and beyond. Later that morning I felt the inevitable burn in my lower thigh muscles, validating that I'd put in a good effort. Run duration was roughly 02:30.

GEL REPORT: At mile 8 I took a Clif Shot vanilla gel; probably the best one so far. Perhaps it was the familiarity, since I noticed it tasted quite a bit like the Powerbar vanilla. At mile 16 I had a Clif Shot chocolate (mocha). It was a bit stronger, but good as well. Again, very similar to the Powerbar version.