Fri 8/28 - PM 50 minutes plus 15 minutes in Lake Cochituate

Weston aqueduct to Framingham, along the Getchell Trail to Danforth and then a quick dip in the lake before heading straight back to WHS. Started late, too late really, after practice wrapped up but at least it made for a nice dip in the lake as the sun set. Two days in a row of running on the convalescing toe has me convinced that I need to take at least two days in a row of not running on it. Nothing outrageous but still a niggling little pain on pushoff. Looking forward to not having to buddy tape the thing. Another warm and sunny day.

Thu 8/27 - 45 minutes plus 30 minutes in Lake Cochituate

Out and back from WHS to the lake, significantly quicker on the return trip. Took the Hultman from Maiden Lane to OCP to get away from the traffic a bit. Made it through the first of many long days in decent shape despite another morning of pre-waking the alarm after another night of getting to bed far too late thanks to having way too much crap to take care of. Toe feels like maybe I shouldn't quite be running on it just yet, at least not on paved surfaces. Humidity finally broke, still warm and sunny with the breeze kicking up some chop on the water.

Wed 8/26 - PM 40 minutes in Lake Cochituate

The only chance I really had to do any kind of workout, and even that was pushing it as it made me late for a meeting. Feeling the walls closing in with practice beginning tomorrow. Pre-woke the alarm by a good half hour for the second day in a row, very annoying. Pond was a nice respite from the day spent working in the salt mines.

Tue 8/25 - 65 minutes elliptigo plus 24 minutes in Walden

Last day of freedom before coaching responsibilities swallow my free time whole. First ride on the elliptigo since the second tube repair. Made it through the ride without any incidents with either tire, but it seemed like I was pedaling through molasses for much of the time esp. on climbs. Hopefully this was due to low tire pressure rather than a mis-aligned rear wheel or lack of fitness. Disgusting humidity level keeps chugging right along.

Mon 8/24 - PM 40 minutes easy plus 35 minutes in Walden

Pressed for time on one of my last days of freedom before the cat herding of kiddie practice starts, which resulted in less time spent in the pond than I would have liked. More running than I would have liked in fact as I would rather return to cross training activities for the balance of the week. Life is compromise of course. Right calf sore from yesterday, while soreness in toe is moderate at most. Sticky gross conditions remain a constant.

Sun 8/23 - AM 60 minutes incl. uphill race followed by downhill hike

Made it through (hopefully) unscathed. Some soreness in the toe but nothing too bothersome, although the right calf is tweaked for sure from favoring it. Insecurities about my physical status led to a fairly conservative start to the race, found myself hanging around the top 10 after the first few minutes. Passed by a couple of guys between the mile mark and 3 mile mark. I had mostly given up on the battle to get them back until near the end when the slope flattened enough that I felt I could pick it up somewhat. Misjudged the finish line and made a more substantial move too soon, nearly paid for it but able to recover enough to get re-pass the high school kid who had just re-passed me and staggered across the line from there. Hike down was more of a trial than I remembered, coming down the ski slope is a steep proposition as it turns out. Splits:

8:02
8:50
9:25
9:50
3:01

overall time the slowest by far of the three times I've done this race but I had other concerns.

Sat 8/22 - PM 25 minutes

Stowe, Vermont. Perhaps a prelude to a big mistake, i.e. racing on a broken toe. Rode the bike up the road to the start of tomorrow's race and from there did 15 minutes or so of jogging that led into something faster than that, on ground as flat as I could find. Toe felt okay on flats and ups, not so much running down. Thankfully, the race tomorrow is all uphill. Changed into flats and ran for four minutes up the hill before calling it a day and jogging gingerly back down. Not sure what shoes I should wear for the race or if I should do the race in the first place.

Fri 8/21 - PM 60 minutes elliptigo plus 30 minutes in Walden

A triumphant return to the elliptigo, at least until I blew the rear tube again right near the end. A much shorter trip on foot back home afterward at least while trying not to break anything else in blind fury. Prior to that a rousing good time of cross-training, with the pond serving as a great respite from another sticky day.