Twelve-Mile Taper Run

I had a tooth extracted and two implants inserted on Friday, and I wasn't sure if running would feel good today. Therefore I started quite modestly with a run/walk ratio of 20/20, and was prepared to drop to all walking for 2.5 hours if necessary. (Each count is a triplet, three footfalls, a convenient measure because it comes out to about one second, so a ratio of 20/20 is really 60 footfalls running and then 60 walking.) That ratio resulted in a pace of 11:37, though, better than I expected.

Grass trails on a
brighter, drier summer day

I felt good, too, no pain in the jaw and plenty of leg strength, so after the first 3.5-mile loop I increased the run/walk ratio to 25/20 in the second loop, and then to 30/20 in the third. I still felt very good, and increased the pace a bit more in the last little 1.5-mile loop. The required average pace for a five-hour marathon is 11:27 and this was 11:23. I carried water and took two gels along the way.

Whining: The right hip flexors hurt a little for most of the way. That is a problem which seems to appear randomly, out of nowhere, and it goes back to nowhere in the next run. It didn't show up in last week's 20-mile run, and there is no way to predict whether it will show up in the marathon two weeks from now. In any case it's never been a pace-limiting problem, so I won't worry about it.

We got about 3/4 inch of very welcome rain last night, but it stopped before dawn and we were going to run the paved trails anyway, so no problem. With the temperature at 59 and a fresh breeze, the run was quite enjoyable. It's an unexpected masterpiece.

Miles	Time	Pace	Loop	Ratio
3.53	41:00	11:37	1	20/20
3.53	40:03	11:21	2	25/20
3.53	39:29	11:11	3	30/20
1.46	16:03	11:00	4	35/20
-------	----------	--------
12.05	2:17:14	11:23	Totals