Page 8, Question 3

Question #3 on page 8 of my questionnaire from my soon-to-be coach deals with staying positive when things don't go well during a race.

I didn't fare so well on this one today.

I started out slow and with some tightness in my shins. That continued for about two miles. I've run through that kind of tightness so it was no big deal. Once the shins loosened up, I felt better but I wasn't able to speed up.

I hit the trail at about the 5.5 mile mark and suddenly hit my stride. Miles 7 through 13 were much much better. But then I started dropping on mile 14. My energy was sapped and my legs were burning. By mile 16 I was jogging four minutes and walking one. I trudged through the last few miles and finished the 20 miles ready to drop.

I'm feeling ok now, 8 hours, some hard-core stretching, plenty of fluids, a hot bath and a generous application of muscle cream later.

I have one more long run left before I taper for the marathon (27 days away). I WILL do better next time.