Last Race!

Today I ran my last race of the year (well, until December). I did the Akron Towpath marathon relay with Jen et. al. We were just out there for fun, and it was actually a blast. We had a great time racing from one relay checkpoint to the next to get there in time for the handoff. The only real challenge was the first handoff because the roads were closed. But Jen's great navigational skills had us in place with plenty of time to spare. I was really glad to see DaisyDuc who showed up to cheer on her friends and run a couple of legs with us. It's always great to have a speedster to pace you!

I have been doing a lot of IT band stretching thanks to Jen who has had similar problems lately. So I stretched last night and then three times before my run. I also did some easy jogging to warm up as I awaited Dave and Janet (DaisyDuc) to get back from their leg and hand off the chip. I wasn't sure how I was going to pace the run. I knew that my competitive spirit wasn't going to allow for 10 minute miles I probably should have run per my Ironman schedule. But since it's my last race I figured I'd let it all out. Janet and I ran together for the first couple miles, but then she started getting some stomach cramping. I would have slowed down, but my knee was feeling so darn well at the pace we were running I didn't want to jinx it by slowing down.

Running the anchor for a marathon relay is a lot of fun. I'm sure many people wanted to strangle me as I ran past them and tried to give out words of encouragement. People were struggling. But I was feeling fantastic. I don't think I've ever felt that great during a run. Could be for a couple of reasons- 1. I am well rested from an easy week 2. I have been off caffeine for 1.5 weeks now and had a Cliff bar with caffeine before I started. Gave me a little boost 3. It was just a damn nice day and the leaves were beautiful and the towpath was a perfect running surface. At any rate I absolutely loved the run. Here's how I did:

Totals:
Distance 5.57 miles
Time 45:25
Avg pace: 8:08
Avg speed 7.4
Max speed 8.1
Calories burned 850
Avg Heart Rate 190
Max HR 196
Ascent 1344 feet

Splits:
1) 8:01 Avg HR 183
2) 8:16 Avg HR 189
3) 8:09 Avg HR 190
4) 7:59 Avg HR 193
5) 8:20 (sunny and hot for this mile) Avg HR 193
5-5.57) 8:05 Avg HR 193


I don't think I'll see 8 minute miles again for months and months with Ironman training. *sigh*