Down on the Boulevard

I've restarted my Tuesday and Thursday morning runs.
Even though there is nothing I would rather do at 5:15 in the morning except go back to bed, there is no better way to start the day than with a good run. Like I said, my running partner Bryan and I took a hiatus for the last couple of month due to the weather and the fact that Bryan suffered a stress fracture in his ankle after Thanksgiving.
This morning was to be our second morning run of the new year. I arrived at 5:50am and parked at the tail end of Cherokee Boulevard. (For those unfamiliar with Knoxville, the Boulevard runs through one of the older neighborhoods of Knoxville surrounded by plenty of expensive homes.) Bryan and I usually meet here and run for about 30-45 minutes, covering distances of 3-4 miles. Today, I parked my car at 5:50 and waited for Bryan, who is very punctual and shows up around 5:55. Once my clock read 6:05, I knew something was wrong. I returned to my car and as soon as I sat down, my cell phone rang. Bryan was on the other end and had problems with his alarm and wasn't going to make it this morning.
There are those moments when you are faced with a decision. I could have taken the easy way and simply left. Or I could go out for a run on my own. Today, I chose the latter and started on my way. Now, let me mention that the temperature this morning was a brisk 24 degree F. Even so, there was a few people out. Perhaps, we are all crazy.
Being alone this morning, I decided to press my run a little as my busy schedule on Saturday had kept me from my run. Today, I decided to run the full length of the Boulevard... 2.6 miles one way.
Running along the road, the first 1.75 miles is generally flat. Beyond that, the remaining mile is full of hills and valleys. I'm proud to say that except for turning around and the final hill, I managed to run the full road... 5.2 miles in under 52 minutes, keeping my 10-minute pace.

Half way there!!!

After the dismal weather of the past 2 weeks, the promise of 60 degree sunny weather is enough to bring a smile to anyone's face. However, it only gets in the 60s in the afternoon... 7:30am, the thermometer was showing a brisk 29 degrees.
Today's group run presented a new distance challenge: 13 miles.

13 miles, .1 mile short of a half-marathon. For you Knoxville folks, longer than the entire distance of I-640 or traveling on I-40/75 from West Hills almost down to the Lenoir City exit. But for me, it marks the halfway point of my overall goal.

Like 2 weeks ago, the course was around the 3rd Creek Greenway. Those training for the marathon would run from the old Bi-Lo parking lot, along the greenway for 3.5 miles and turn around. We would run a second lap of 3 miles down and back.

Even though it was cold at the start, everyone seemed to get off to a good start. The greenway was a little crowded this morning as the Knoxville Track Club was hosting a training run for the Knoxville Marathon as well. One thing I've discovered is that most runners seem to be nice friendly people, a smile and small wave as you pass by. Perhaps it's that feeling of "I know what your going through." And, even though it's very small, it can be a nice pick up.

The other thing I had going for me today was the addition of my IPod Nano. I bought a refurbished Nano from Apple a couple of weeks ago specifically for running. I own another IPod classic, but found out last year they weren't designed for running. (Mainly, because of the movement while running, they shut down after 30 minutes.) [An added benefit of the new IPod was that I was finally able to use the Christmas gift Sarah gave me 2 years ago. The watch above also is able to serve as a remote control for the player and it worked like a charm.] It's funny, but having the music made the trip pass a little quicker.

Today I had another first. The first time I really hit the wall. I won't say the whole trip was quick and easy, but the first 10 miles weren't bad. I was making good times around 9:30 - 10:30 pace per mile. I didn't have to stop to walk at all, only stopping for water. After my last water stop in Tyson Park, I had 3 miles ahead of me to get back to the car. The first thing was the stiffness in my calves. The hills seemed a little steeper and my pace started to slow. With a little less than 2 miles to go, I crossed a big hill and finally had to slow to a walk. I had to give myself credit; I had done better with these 11 miles than I did 2 weeks earlier, now I was in uncharted territory.

I had to slow to walk a couple more times. I never completely stopped, but it was getting harder to want to start back up to a run. Finally at mile 12 (1 mile to go), I wasn't sure if I would get back to a run, most of the final mile would be on an uphill grade. I had 2 runners pass me and I knew I couldn't walk the last mile. I forced myself into short bursts of running and then finally in the last .25 miles I told myself I couldn't break stride again.

I may have wanted to die at the end, but I did run the final .25 miles.... an exhilarating and scary finish. Exhilarating in that for the most part, I ran a half-marathon this morning and an halfway to my goal. Scary in that looking ahead, I'm only halfway there. To finish my goal, I'll have to double my output this morning. I will have to keep my runs up to build up my endurance.

Let me clarify one point, some of you may look at the time above and compare it to the time from 2 weeks ago and think that I had a better time on my last run. The time above is my complete time for start to finish, without stopping the clock at all. The time from 2 weeks ago is only time in transit. Any stops were not included in the time below.

Stay tuned; the best is yet to come!!!