Conversations

Niamh: We’re going to Dublin soon
Maia: uuuhhh!
N: who lives in Dublin?
M: Gaga!
N: Yes, and who else?
M: Nana!
N: And we’re going to see Clara
M: Baba!!!!!
N: That’s right, she’s a baby and her mummy is Sara
M: Rara!
N: And we’ll see aunty Cliona
M: Wawa!
N: do you remember what gift Cliona gave you?
M: Yaya aow! Yaya aow! (translation: Maia’s Cat! Maia’s Cat!)

She’s not even 2 years old, but you can already have a conversation, as long as you know her baby words. But the girl herself understands every single word you say.

A different conversation went on this morning:

Niamh: I didn’t like the sound of your cough this morning
Thomas: Neither did I
N: Don’t you have something of a neck test
T: What do you mean?
N: You promised you wouldn’t go running if there are symptoms below the neck
T: I DIDN’T GO RUNNING THIS MORNING
N: Oh (silence) You didn’t?
T: What do you mean? I was in bed right beside you!
N: I don’t notice these things. I just sleep.

At least it tells me I’m not missed when I’m out running.

There were 2 photos from Sunday’s race:

Being chased by the leading lady (Hey, I don't usually get chased by the girls!):



Just before the finish:


As far as training goes, I have been following P&D’s 6 weeks between marathons schedule fairly closely, just adding a few miles here and there. The 4 main workouts in that program are 2 interval workouts, a race on day 15 and an 18-miler on day 14. The last one really surprised me when I read it – I would have been much more conservative when creating my own schedule. Being lucky enough to find a race exactly 15 days before Dublin I felt compelled to do the following day’s workout as well, cold or no cold.

If Mike would have sabotaged my car on Sunday to prevent me going to Killarney, he probably would have been lying in wait by my driveway on Monday morning with at least a stun gun to prevent me from doing a long run. I guess it’s a good thing that he’s on the opposite side of the Atlantic then. I had set the alarm for 5 o’clock but woke shortly after 3 and started coughing. The one thing I said would stop me from running! However, I decided to be boneheaded and force through that one workout, but start a more disciplined approach immediately afterwards. The coughing stopped eventually, and just as I was drifting off to sleep again the alarm told me it was time to go.

I set off under a beautiful starry sky, but after a minute or two noticed that I had left my reflective bib at home. I hesitated for a bit, but then decided that going out for a long run with a cold the day after a race was stupid enough in itself; there was no need to add another layer of idiocy on top by running without wearing a hi-viz item. I turned around and rectified the problem. The run was surprisingly good, but a freezing cold headwind made me turn homewards after passing through Cromane rather than completing the entire loop via Killorglin. Instead I added a 6 miles out-and-back section after passing our driveway. On this section I tried to increased the pace again but had neither the legs nor the spirit to really push the effort, and 7:20 pace was all I had to show for. On the other hand, I didn’t feel tired during the entire run. While I think I can still feel some lingering effects from Dingle in my slightly sluggish legs, there is nothing wrong with my endurance. I can run 18 miles before breakfast without even batting an eyelid.

What I haven’t decided yet is the time I’m aiming for in Dublin, which is why Grellan is still waiting for an answer after asking twice. Sorry mate, the way things are going I might only make up my mind after crossing the start line.

Today the alarm went off at 6:40 for a 5-mile recovery run. I turned it off and snuggled into my blanket instead. Not that anyone took notice.

12 Oct

18 miles, 2:17:03, 7:37 pace, HR 149
last 6 @ 7:20 pace

13 Oct

0 miles *gasp*