Fifteen Miles

We got an early start this morning, which was a good thing because the sun was full strength and the day warmed quickly.  I did three loops totaling fifteen miles, stopping at the car for water after each, and got a little slower with each loop.  The temperature was about 60 when we started and 77 when we finished three hours later.  There is some shade on these trails, but not a lot.

I really do love running here,
all the more when fall comes.

I felt good but not great today, a little more tired than I expected to feel.  Maybe I shouldn’t have run yesterday.  On the other hand it’s probably good to train on tired legs, though I wouldn’t race like that.  The warm air and hot sun were factors too.  The resulting 12-minute pace is OK for me these days, considering the difficulty of the trails.

I took four gels along the way, and carried water, drinking more of it than I had expected.  I actually ran out, but got a refill from a handy spigot in the parking lot.  I’ll have to remember where that spigot is.

Whining:  Zero!  That’s very nice.

Loops: 1:33:41 for 7.97 mi (pace 11:45), 47:43 for 4.03 (pace 11:50), 37:19 for 3.01 (pace 12:24), total 2:58:42 for 15.01, overall pace 11:54.