Week of 9/25-10/1

Mon 9/25 - off. A bit of light jogging to and from the ballyard but I wouldn't call it a run of any notable length.Almost as hot today as it was yesterday.

Tue 9/26 - PM 65 minutes easy plus 15 minutes in Walden. Probably the last dip in the pond for the season barring another late season heat wave. Worth the trip over for sure.

Wed 9/27 - AM 25 minutes incl. 5k progression on the track. Truly a fool's errand, thought I'd get in a quick hitter before heading off to the kiddie meet and instead found myself roasting to death on the griddle of a high school track close to noontime on a despicably hot and sticky day. Should have stuck with the original plan to run an 8k cutdown starting at a more modest pace but thought I would one up myself by doing 2x5k instead. Realized at the 3k mark I wouldn't be doing a second one as in sticking to the planned pace numbers I was working way too hard in the swamp sauce conditions. All five kms were within a second of planned, starting at 3:55 and ending at 3:35, the whole thing in 18:42. In addition to being heat addled I was also undeniably tired from an unending and unyielding string of too late bedtimes. No more afternoon naps and this is how I respond, at a loss to understand it.

Thu 9/28 - PM 70 minutes easy, Area 51. It occurred to me that the refuge is back in play and has been for some time now in fact. Calf a bit stiff from yesterday.

Fri 9/29 - PM 35 minutes easy. Late start, shorter run than I would have liked.

Sat 9/30 - PM 30 minutes easy. Flat and fairly tired after a long day standing around in a field watching the kiddie races in a chilly rain.

Sun 10/1 - AM 85 minutes including half marathon. Water finding its own mediocre level. Felt tired and stiff-legged from the jump and it took the better part of 8 or 9 miles to feel any different, and by then exhaustion had set in and simply maintaining the pace was a chore. I fully expected an epic fade over the last 5k, and while that didn't quite happen I was stuck at around 6:10 pace from start to finish. Certainly the 2 hour pre-dawn car ride didn't help matters but that kind of thing hasn't been an excuse in the past. Course was mostly flat except for a few rollers on either side of the turnaround point. My reaction to those small hills suggested that if there was more roll on the course it would have gotten really ugly. Cool and dry, minimal breeze and excellent conditions overall. Splits:

6:09
6:03
6:06
5:55
6:08
6:15
6:12
6:11
6:01
6:11
6:25
6:09
6:16