Tour de France Addict

Sunday, July 13:

Why would I be out running at 4:30 in the morning? Because today the Tour de France live coverage began at 6:30. Downside: Sleep deficit, although I did go to bed early the night before. Also, I needed a headlight and reflective vest. Upside: I ran through the sunrise (a nice one, I like that), saw deer three times including (I think) a mule deer which would be unusual in this part of Minnesota, watched an eagle patrol the road and the lake for roadkill and careless fish, saw blue herons and great egrets, and ran on my favorite dirt trail beside the tracks as a train thundered past. 64 degrees with a 15 mph wind, mostly a crosswind, what an invigorating morning! Running doesn’t get a lot better than this.

Splits: 9:27, 9:08, 9:48, 8:33, 9:39, 9:26, 9:05, 10:31, 9:43, 9:45, total 1:35:04, ten miles, pace 9:30 overall. Water at miles 4 & 6, a fountain in the park. Same run as last Thursday, same time. Breathing was mostly four footfalls per full breath, which is a sustainable pace, neither a race pace nor an easy jog. I walked up most hills, and never heard a peep from the grumpy old hip flexors. No pains, all good.

Saturday, July 12:

St Croix Valley Runners, five miles in 44:36, pace 8:55. Very nice run with Doug, Roy, Dave, Candy, Dave (2), and Luke. George was there but was nursing an injury. Excellent, cool weather, humidity dropping as we ran. Part of the route is now under construction - some of the group chanced the mud and ran it anyway, while some of us (me included) took a paved detour that turned out to be about the same distance, as we all met up again a few minutes later.

	Post-run oatmeal: Irish oatmeal with organic flame raisins and dried cranberries, organic nectarine, blueberries, cantaloupe, organic grapes, organic walnuts, organic pomegranate juice, organic nonfat milk.
Saturday dinner: Organic chicken breast, organic nectarine, sweet-potato salad including sweet potatos, cucumbers, peas, eggs, onions, celery, yogurt, vinegar. That is such a good salad - ask Sunshine for the recipe.

Tour de France

Not exactly the Tour, but I did ride the bike this morning. Short ride out, then 15 hilly loops in a quiet residential area, then a short ride back. Total of 14.25 miles in almost exactly an hour. Gosh that seems slow. I’m watching the Tour de France right now and they are SO much faster! Uff-da. Average of 27 mph today for over 100 miles, on Belgian roads as flat as a pannekoeken.

Nevertheless my heart rate and breathing were at least as fast as they would be running 8:30 miles or so. This was a good workout. Best of all, NO knee trouble. Is that because this was a hilly ride, with a lot of pedaling while standing up? Or maybe my knee is just getting better. Also best of all, my sweeties were running on the same roads, so I gave and got a smile and a wave every few minutes.

I love this time of year when I can watch the Tour de France every day. In fact I just leave the TV on and watch it several times a day.

Foot doctor tomorrow. I'm learning to enjoy biking, but I'm really a runner and will return to training when the plantar fasciitis is resolved. Soon, please!



Organic oatmeal, organic milk, organic strawberries, organic nectarine, blueberries, banana, organic candied ginger. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 5.