I'm Back!

Sweet Jesus!  I'm wiped out, but I did run the entire time!  

Let's start with what this run had going for it: decent temperature, no sun sucking the life out of me, and I think that's it!

Let's start with what this run didn't have going for me: darkness, humidity, darkness, 2 hours (if that) of sleep, darkness, a bridge, and did I mention darkness?

The headlamp on the visor didn't work out so well; it was too high up & pointed more "out" than "down."  To get an ground illumination that helped, I had to look more "down" than I would have liked.  Tried to use my phone as a sort of flashlight; but let's be real: how much light do you get from a phone?

Let's start from the beginning.  The first two miles were decent & comfortable (under an 8 min pace).  I knew at mile 2.2 that I'd have to cross to the other side.  There was a sign that said "cross," but it didn't specify to cross right at that exact moment.  Luckily, I didn't go too far before turning around & crossing.  I'd say it was less than 45 seconds.  Well, upon crossing, you're pretty much starting the bridge.  It's no 7 Mile Bridge, but a bridge is still a ball buster and endurance killer.  At least the down part makes up for the hell of the up part!  After the bridge, though, it got tough mainly because of the extreme darkness.  There were long stretches of nothing: no other runners, no cars, just nothing.  This is where the sucky headlamp started to really bite the big one.  When there would be oncoming traffic, the headlights, even if they weren't high beams, were just blinding.  Maybe I run crooked, but I kept drifting right.  Let me specify that I was not running on the shoulder of the road, but more of a trail/bike path off to the side.  But drifting too far right means the paved path ends and uneven grass/gravel begins.  Ever since my injury, I'm somewhat overly paranoid about watching where I step, so this got me a bit nervous & rattled.  Long story short: my pace slowed down due to not wanting to trip & have my face meet the pavement.  I wouldn't say I had any "close calls" to eating it, but I did have some bobbles that, obviously, unnerved me.  My splits tell the story.

I had hoped to have my average pace for this run be under 8 minutes per mile.  It wasn't.  But if there was a redeeming event, it would be my road kills!  I'll be honest: I tried to count.  I got to 6, and then there was a long stretch of no one and just darkness.  My mind was (and is) mush, so I lost count.  However, after the 6 (which was probably in the first two miles), I know I had quite a few more.  My conservative estimate is 15.  Not half bad for these chicken legs, huh?!

Here's a look at my route.