Dozen Miles and Dirty Diapers

Another Vienna to Reston round trip. Absolutely gorgeous day for a simulated half-marathon, clicked off 12 miles in my final long run before the National Half Marathon. The weather was sunny and warm, although the winds picked up at times. Felt great throughout and still have trouble slowing down on my long runs...clocked in at an 8:40 average pace and felt pretty relaxed. Maybe I should revise my half marathon target pace downwards.

Hardest Part of the Day, Part 1: Around mile 8, just about the time I was jonesin' for a Shot Blok or two, I ran past a family pushing a stroller with a dirty diaper on board. As the wind blew with me, I endured ungodly chemical warfare for the next quarter-mile...could barely breathe. I hope those poor parents were close to home.

Hardest Part of the Day, Part 2: Running past the Pizza Hut and McDonalds (during lunch hour) on Wiehle Avenue at mile 5 and again at mile 7.  Never has grease and GMO-fed beef smelled so good.

Definitely need new shoes, but too close to the fire to switch now. I'll power through the half marathon in a couple weeks and retire my shoes at the end of 13.1 hard miles; it's the way they'd want to go out.

Week in Summary
Tues	5 mi
Wed	45 min tempo (pace up 5', 30'; down 35', 40') (est. 5 mi)
Thurs	Skipped due to biblical flooding
Sat	5 mi (half marathon pace)
Sun	12 mi
Total Week's Mileage: 27 miles