Ticking Over

I know I'm not updating as often as usual at the moment, but there are only so many ways you can say "ran easily on Thursday and Friday, felt good".

So, what did I do?

I ran easily on Thursday and Friday and felt good.

On Saturday I had to drive the three older kids to Cork again, for the second last time this turn. Thank God that's nearly over, having to wake them early and leave at 8 o'clock on a Saturday morning 8 weeks in a row is a lot to ask for. It's a credit to them that they never complained - they enjoyed the course so much, obviously.

I have 2.5 hours to kill, which I, of course, use for running. The Blackrock area, roughly miles 10-15 of the Cork marathon course, is by far my favourite, but it requires to go through town, so when I have only limited time available I head for the straight road, not as nice but perfectly good for a run. I did miles 22-25 of the marathon course each way and with a little bit extra added on I came to 8 miles. That's fine. The problem was that I just could not keep the pace at the planned 7:15. I kept checking the Garmin, and every time I looked I kept seeing some pace between 6:15 and 6:45. So much for my belief that I can tune into the right pace without that watch by now. It was only 8 miles so there's no damage done; it was probably useless from a physiological point of view but a fantastic confidence booster all the same.

The weather always tends to be beautiful at this time of the year and this year is no exception. It would be nice if this were not the only nice sunny period of the year for a change; the last three summers have all been abysmal.

Of course I hope we won't have 23 degrees in Connemara again, even though I handled that reasonably well in 2010. I'd rather have perfect running conditions for my assault at the sub-5.

Anyway, I used today's beautiful weather for a trail run on the Kerry Way, from our house all the way to Windy Gap and back. The high point is about 1150 feet high and there is plenty of up and down on the way which adds up to a more than decent amount of climbing. Even though the pace would not indicate it, I ran it at a reasonable effort; not particularly hard but not hanging around either. I did not meet a single soul on the trail, it was just me and a few panicked sheep. The view, as always, was absolutely stunning. I do appreciate living in such a scenic part of the world - I only wish the weather were better.

Only one week left to Connemara. This is going to be great!

22 Mar

5 miles, 38:34, 7:42 pace, HR 137

23 Mar

5 miles, 38:28, 7:41 pace, HR 138

24 Mar

8 miles, 55:05, 6:53 pace, HR 156

25 Mar

10.7 miles, 1:27:58, 8:13 pace, HR 149
   trail run

Weekly Mileage: 46+