« Last of the summer bunions | Main | Sore »
August 20, 2005
Finally, a solid 20+ miler (and runners vs. bikers)
Beth must've sent some positive vibes my way because I had a nice 23+ miler this morning! I woke up at 4:30 and was on the road running through Georgetown by 5:30. It was still pretty dark, so I decided not to run on Capital Crescent Trail. I'm glad because I was later told that a girl was beat up and her bike was stolen on the trail. Anyhow, while running on M Street, I did some fly-by window shopping. I then ran over to the White House, to the National Mall, over to Mt. Vernon trail, and then back to Iwo Jima to meet my club. My left shin hurt early on and my legs were taking a long time to loosen up, but around mile 6, my stride started to feel less forced. I think the weather helped. It was supposed to be super hot and humid, but because it stayed cloudy for the entire run, it wasn't too bad. I settled in with a slower group and managed to stave off the mental demons. I witnessed two biker/runner-related confrontations in the first half hour. One of our guys was running in the middle of the trail when the first biker comes down a hill pretty fast and slams into the runner. The biker went flying into the grass and ended up unclipping in the process. It could've been much uglier, as we were in a large pack behind the other guy. In the next incident, another runner in the middle of the trail (again) bumped into a second biker, and he got super pissed. They started shoving each other and had to be pulled apart. As both a runner and biker, I could understand why the bikers were annoyed, but seriously, no need to exchange blows! Also, the runners should've known better about trail etiquette. The rest of the run was mostly uneventful, with the exception of running near a gal who refused to let me run next to or in front of her. Whenever we climbed any bridges or hills, I had to run alongside her in order to not clip her feet. But she kept speeding up and running in the middle of our side of the trail. I tried not to get too frustrated and simply tucked in behind her as she sped up. I guess she wore herself out because I dropped her after the water stop with 7+ miles to go. Though I was pretty tired near the end, I was able to pick up the pace a teeny bit. I ended up with 23+ miles, as I ran 8.5 beforehand and the planned route was closer to 14.8 miles, according to one guy's GPS. A cool post-run treat is that we get free yummy electrolyte water since our long run leader somehow got a sponsorship from SmartWater. The stuff's not cheap, so we take home extra bottles whenever he offers.
After the run, I stopped at Whole Foods to get a Jamba Juice, which is becoming a post-long run routine. Today I also tried a wheatgrass shot that my friend recommended for vitamin loading and "cleansing". It tasted nasty - pretty much like grass, so I was thankful that the guy offered me an orange juice chaser. It gave me nausea too because I started dry heaving on the way home...or it could've just been that my stomach felt empty and I was craving something other than carbs.
It's been so relaxing not to have any big taskers this afternoon. I tried to start reading for Fall semester, but my attention span was very short. Now we're off to dinner and a movie. If only it could be like this every weekend!
Posted by Leilani at August 20, 2005 06:22 PM
Comments
Congratulations on such a great and long run! Those Beth vibes must be pretty strong. It sounds like you were also lucky that you weren't attacked or hit by a bike!
The wheatgrass shot sounds totally nasty. I refuse to eat or drink anything that doesn't taste good to me, no matter how good someone says it might be for me. (Okay, cough syrup may be an exception to that.)
Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Posted by: Alison at August 21, 2005 07:31 AM
Hey - I'm glad my vibes worked! :) Now if I could only get the darn things to make Chester feel better...
Anyway, it's GREAT to hear that you had a good long run!! Hopefully this will be the start to a solid training cycle. Stay cool and enjoy the rest of your weekend! :)
Posted by: Beth at August 21, 2005 08:07 AM
That's great L! I hope that gives a huge confidence boost that you are ready to kick some "arse" as you so desire. I can't believe you accidently ran extra. Woah!
Posted by: Audrey at August 21, 2005 10:32 AM
Cows eat grass, NOT people...oh and our cat, he eats grass too...and also barfs.
Posted by: R. at August 22, 2005 10:00 AM
Wow that's an awesome long run! Glad it went really well. The whole biker/runner thing does get a bit intense at times. As a biker/runner I have to side with the runners though, mainly b/c the bikers go faster and can see the runners way before hand (plus they could alert them). Yesterday I saw some bikers get pretty violent. What's up w/ that? I thought sports made people relax...
Posted by: Nanda at August 22, 2005 11:17 AM