Saturday, August 19, 2006

Mission accomplished


With today's run of 20.5 miles I finally reached my goal of running every section of the Wildwood trail. Now I'm ready to explore more loops. But I felt like I needed to get that out of the way first.

I'm not really sure why, but I was very wary of today's run. I just wasn't sure I could do it or wanted to do it. But I reminded myself that some of my best runs have happened on days that I didn't think would be my best. And today turned out to be one of those days! Maybe just telling myself that it could be great, made it great.

I ran an out and back, and just a bit after the turnaround a group of four guys passed me at a pretty good pace. Further along I passed them at the Saltzman road crossing (turns out they were waiting to meet a friend.) Once they got going it wasn't long before they passed me again. One of them commented "Great pace." Of course, I thought he was just being nice. But after I got home, looked at the map and logged my miles and time, turns out I completed 20.5 miles with a 11:24 pace! I had to double and triple check my map. Yep, 11:24 pace, which is pretty fast for me on trail. Even on Wildwood, which is very runnable. Even with a lot of walking on the last big hill. Heck, last week I only did 11 at about a 12:30 pace. So I'm very proud of myself and have to remember the power of positive thinking!

When I got back to the trailhead those same four guys were there doing their end of run stretching. We chatted a bit. Turns out one of them is also running McKenzie River and has already run it three times. So I got to pick his brain a bit about the trail. There are some rocky, technical portions, which are my weakness. I had been toying with the idea of doing a three week taper instead of two. It hinged on whether I got in a good long run this weekend. Since I have, I may just forgo a longer run next weekend and instead do a medium long run on more technical trails out in the gorge. Tomorrow I'm still planning on running 10, or maybe 11.

~~~~~

Also.....I wanted to say I really appreciate the feedback on my workout! I'm taking it to heart and I'm sure there will be adjustments.

To answer a few questions, despite the strength training, Friday really is a rest day. The amount of training I do for my abs, arms and shoulders on Friday's really isn't that taxing. I can see that Monday probably isn't the best day for working legs and I'll have to work on moving that around. However, I need to balance my other commitments to family and running partners.

And finally, I can't believe I forgot to mention cycling. I recently purchased a cheapo, secondhand (but it works!) stationary bike. Its likely that over the winter my Wednesday runs will be replaced with cycling. I'd really like to take a spinning class. But I've yet to find a convenient studio or gym where I can just take a class without joining the gym.

11 comments:

Unknown said...

Great job on your 20 miler on Wildwood. The last time I was there it was very muddy. Good luck with your prep for Mckenzie River. I know you will do great.

Olga said...

Wow, fantastic pace!! Sarah, you're rocking!

Kim said...

Great pace. And a big YES to the positive thinking. I believe, once you have a base of running down, it's the mental attitude alot more that the physical attributes.

Backofpack said...

Wow, that's cool that you've run every step of the trail. And finished it with a bang!

matt said...

next step...run the whole trail :)

great job, sarah! you have the positve attitude thing down pat :)

Jack said...

Great job with your long run. Super pace! Nothing like the power of positive thinking!

Anonymous said...

wow, your pace was fantastic! yay sarah! some of my best runs have been on little sleep the night before and started with a cranky attitude, go figure. now i'm not nearly as freaked out by lack of sleep or feeling tired/cranky/etc. I know it'll be good!

Sarah Elaine said...

Good job on the pace! If you decide to take the spin class, keep us posted. I've always wondered what they're like.

seagull junker said...

You will absolutly love McKenzie River. It is one of the most scenic trails we have in Oregon. It is very runnable also, like Wildwood. As for the technical sections, I would say they are REALLY short and no problem. So, have fun. I will be running the race for the first time also. (I have run the trail a few times) Hope to see you there.
tom

Ryan said...

Good times! I’m so jealous...it sounds wonderful!

Jessica DeLine said...

Great job! 20.5 miles with a 11:24 pace? Wow!!