Winter, it’s the new Spring. I just love Spring in the Winter. I am able to go to work without a coat and I can run outside without having to put on tights, hat and multiple layers. Not that I really mind the cold. If you dress properly, the cold should not be an issue, even on the most cold and windy of days. But nothing beats getting home from work and hearing your kids tell you that it’s so warm outside that they want to ride their bikes with you while you run. I love when they accompany me. Besides the company, I know they are getting some much needed exercise and a break from the usual gamut of cartoons on TV.
Yesterday worked out perfectly for me. I wanted to go for a run at lunch in this sunny and warm weather, but I was invited out to a power lunch to welcome a new staff member to my company’s management team. I couldn’t gracefully turn it down and I harbored hopes of being able to sneak out of the office later in the day to get in the run. How happy was I, when my wife called me later in the day to tell me that my kids wanted to ride with me when I got home from work. It made my day and once again thought how everything happens for a reason.
This morning I started to get back into my training routine after being off of it for a little over a week due to travel and a cold. I need to get focused if I am going to have a shot at being successful for the Vermont 100 miler. I got outside this morning while it was still dark, in shorts and light jacket (Go Global Warming!), and did a slow 7 miles in Prospect Park. I had the energy to do the run and the music I was listening to made the run go by pleasantly enough, but I was a little concerned with how slow my pace was. I was only averaging about 10 minute miles which is obscenely slow for me. I was wondering what ever happened to my casual 8 minute mile training pace.
I could already hear in my head the conversation I am going to have with my coach later in the day when I complain to him about my pace. He is just going to tell me not to worry about it. I guess I really shouldn’t, especially because in the Vermont 100 miler I would be very ecstatic with averaging a 10 mm pace and I know I will not be averaging that. For the VT100 I’ll be quite satisfied coming in at 24 hours which is just under 14:30’s per mile. That pace just sounds so doable, but we are talking about moving at that pace for a straight 24 hours. We will just see how it goes. Those back to back 8 hour training runs that will come up in the real Spring should be a good indication of my VT100 pace.
One of the biggest things I am coming to grips with over doing the VT100 is the fact that I am pretty much giving up on Ironman for the next two years. Well, at least IM Lake Placid. I won’t be doing it this year, and I won’t be able to register myself for next year. Ironman is just something I’ve been holding onto for the past 5 years and its feeling weird letting go. I suppose I could drive the few hundred miles from Vermont to Lake Placid to register the day after, but I think that might just be a little insane; just a little. I really can’t worry about that though. I need to focus completely on the VT100. Perhaps I’ll be able to get into the Badwater 135 the next year. For those reading my blog that don’t know, the Badwater 135 is a 135 mile run starting in Badwater, Death Valley in the middle of the summer. It starts from the lowest point on the North American continent (285’ below sea level) and winds up on top of Mt. Whitney at 8360'. If I can do the VT100, I should be able to do that. It’s only an extra 35 miles. Oh the suffering should be so damn good. |
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