last week of training went spectacular. my favorite run of the week was my unplanned 20 mile run in lake placid. the route is basically the last 10 miles of the ironman 2 loop (each 56 mile)bike course.
let me jump back in time for a moment (July 25th) - my training partner and I first ran this course on July 25th to watch our fellow running friends compete in the ironman. so we chose a route that would allow the riders to see us and for us to cheer them on. we decided to run against the riders with a better chance of spotting them. it was the last 10 miles of their course, give or take. we ran it in completely even splits; 1:15:00 out and 1:15:00 back. out was all downhill pretty much which included passing Whiteface Mountain and the High Falls Gorge, back was all uphill (which is the same direction as the riders, that's one really tough course! and they have to do the loop twice!!)
so this past sunday, on a whim, I went back to run the route again. I figured my 20 miler last weekend was on a very flat course, I wanted to get another challenging one in before the races start. also, it was raining and humid at home, and in LP it was about 74°F, and cloudy and I needed a change in scenery! my husband came to fish while I ran, so we actually parked at the previous turnaround point (10 mi out from LP). so you know what that means...you got it...all uphill for the 1st 10, but back down for the 2nd 10.
Tip #1 - on longer runs, put out fluids for yourself ahead of the run; pick various places, it will not only keep you hydrated, but motivated to go the full distance! It's the pot of gold at the end of a rainbow :) )
on our way into town, I dropped water at the new turnaround 10 mi, then 6.6 mi, and another at 3.3 miles from the start. I made sure I had my Gu's with me and then I was off. I love hills, so the 1st half was awesome. I had to keep switching shoulders of the road, due to the angle of it, as well as some major narrow spots. the road parallels the ausable river most of the way, with a gorgeous backdrop of the high peaks. the 1st 10 mi, averaged 7:28/mi, the way back averaged 6:54/mi. Total 20.9 miles 2:30:13 avg 7:11/mi (20 mi split was 2:23:xx). looking back to the 25th, I was about 7 mins faster overall this time, and I was running by myself, and didn't have hundreds of ironman competitors riding along the entire way. the peacefulness was awesome, I was in such a tranquil mood during and after, I love Lake Placid! Runs with a backdrop like this are almost like running and doing yoga at the same time!
here's the elevation plots:
 |
| aug 2010 |
 |
| jul 2010 |
No comments:
Post a Comment