Another good week

Monday I did a little work on an apartment in Beverly for my mom and then ran easy along the oceanside past Dane Street Beach and down by Lynch Park to Endicott College on Rte. 127. It was clear, breezy and cool for late August and I was feeling a little rundown from several longer and harder efforts last week. Very nice.

Tuesday, I kept with the coastal theme, heading up to Gloucester to meet a friend who has only been running regularly for less than a year and we did the Backshore run or most of it conversationally.

Wednesday, I had to be in Dracut, and I had looked at a couple potential runs in the area, but ended up having to guide one of my caregivers back to 93, and so I came all the way back to Topsfield for a run. I had also mapped out a "Strava segment" workout in downtown Topsfield which zigged and zagged through a neighborhood I was sort of familiar with. One segment was on rte. 97 and another ran on the rail trail. I started out with the longest, just over a mile on Surrey Lane, which had some decent climbing in it. I ran 5:43 pace (5:53 for the segment) and had a long recovery before the 7/10ths of a mile segment back on the rail trail. I was able to bring it down to 5:28 pace (4:00) and then had a short recovery before another longer segment with a hill on Partridge Road. I managed a 5:15 which wass 5:46 pace, and then had another short recovery to 97, where my 4:19 (5:50 pace) matched the existing fastest time. I had an easy cooldownback to downtown on another gorgeous late summer but felt like early fall day.

Thursday, for the second week in a row, I met Joe Shairs at Danvers High School and we did an out and back on the rail trail. We did 8 miles (down from 9 last week) and I was dragging. Not sure if the increased training caught up to me again or if I hadn't eaten or drank enough during the day or what, but I felt like the pain of everyone at the turnaround. After a mile or so chatting on the way back I felt ok for the last couple.

Friday I made plans to run with Jordan Kinley from Endicott and I was thinking 6-8 would be good. Then when Dan Vassallo guest starred, we made it a round 10 out and back up to downtown Manchester-by-the-Sea. The conversation was the history of hip hop, wilmington track and field coaches, craft beers and eating and drinking runs. Great time with two great guys. On a side note, it has been awesome to be able to get together with long-missed friends, colleagues, competitors, teammates and running legends in a relatively short time back on my feet.

Saturday (yesterday) Heather and I took advantage of her parents being back in town and ran 7 miles together for the third time in three weeks.

Today I ran in the rain for a little over 6 miles.

50 mile weeks seem to be happening now without even thinking about it and that is beyond my wildest dreams based on the inconsistency of my training for the last two and a half years.