Spring is here! I've only ever run outdoors in cold weather, except for that one time in Miami - which was hot as balls. But Spring has begun to blossom in NYC and there really could be no more glorious place to run on Earth. Central Park was positively humming with revelers today. The running path was jammed with runners, joggers, walkers, bikers, rollerbladers, people in wheelchairs, way too many horse carriages, and even some side-steppers. Is that a new thing? Side-stepping for miles? I saw a couple of weirdos doing it.
My training schedule called for me to do a 10M or 10K race this weekend but, because tomorrow is the NYC Half Marathon, which I'm volunteering at, there weren't any other races going on within a few hours drive of New York City. I told myself I'd just do a "mock" race, and build myself up with anxiety before running, to simulate the pressure of a real race day. Well that didn't happen! I was so overwhelmed by the beautiful sights along the way, I got lost in the purple and white crocus that hit my eye immediately upon entering at Columbus Circle.
I've always had a passion for crocus. I recently gave my mother of pot of them - they were forced in a hot house - but when the recent storms were making her blue, I figured they'd give her hope that spring was on its way. Crocus are just such a humble flower - resilient and bold, the first to pop their waxy heads out in spring, unafraid to be challenged by latent frosts that would linger. The crocus opens by day and closes by night, as if reserving energies for whatever the next day might bring. They really only hang around for a short while, and then are replaced unceremoniously by much bigger, more fragrant flowers which bloom from spring through summer, on the ground and hanging down from the branches of regal cherry, magnolia and dogwood trees. Nobody thinks of the crocus again after April, when Nature does her upgrade; but for me the crocus is always a welcome sign and the harbinger of visual and olfactory joys to come. Also, she's low on pollen so she doesn't make me sneeze.
My hope today was to beat my last 10M time, which was 2:06:20/12:38 pace. I ran the exact same path, to keep it fair. Full loop taking the break at 102nd Street, 2 x the reservoir and then 1 x the bridal path. In the back of my mind, I had the idea that doing it in under 2 hours would be dreamy... I didn't achieve my second goal but I did achieve my first. I finished in 2:01:38 which nets a pace of 12:10. That's of course :28 faster per mile, and over 4 minutes saved. I downed an espresso before I started, one bottle of sports drink in the first hour, then a gel pack, then another gel pack when I finished 7.5 miles, then the second sports drink over the second hour. Within 30 minutes of finishing I had 15 mg of protein in a shake, and stretched. I consumed 700 calories and the Nike+ told me I burned just over 1,000. That leaves room for cocktails tonight! Yippee!
I feel completely nonplussed. I was tired when I finished - oh yes! But I felt like I was cheating... like I hadn't really finished. Like, I was supposed to keep going for another few miles. Isn't that strange? I didn't WANT to keep running. I was thrilled to stop! Would have liked to have stopped after 5 miles. And then again after 8. I was really pathetic on the hills today, especially in the second half. But I guess I was running a little faster overall throughout so that doesn't look obvious from my overall time. I've got a neat-o farmer tan going on I think... Didn't bother with sunblock because I didn't expect it to be quite so sunny... and also didn't expect it to be quite so warm. Running in the morning is going to be essential as the days get hotter and hotter. No more mid-day gallops for this horse or they're going to start calling me "Red."
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