I was up at 5AM for my morning run. It’s been about a year since I have run in the little town of Keene. It is a great place to run, but unfortunately, it’s a bit of a drive to get there. The running options in Keene are a 3 mile out-and-back, or a 7 mile loop. Basically you do the math to get your mileage. Figuring out 17 miles was easy for me: 1 out-and-back plus 2 loops.
The first 3 miles were real tough for me. I was the only person who elected to start with the out-and-back. So I was all by myself. It was still kind of dark out, and I kept getting chased by dogs. My stomach was also unsettled. As an experiement, last night before bed I drank a bottle of GatorAde. It just sat in my stomach like a lead balloon. I was full of electolytes (it’s what plants crave), but it did not digest well. I was really questioning this whole running thing.
Things changed for me around mile #4, at the start of the first loop. It was here that I got off the pavement, and onto the dirt road. My stomach was finally starting to settle. And it was around here that I had a very good thought: I just passed 700 miles on the year. This was my running goal for the year, and I was passing it in September. Cool!
It wasn’t until the end of the first loop (around mile #10) that I started seeing people. Because of the weird mileage options in Keene, everyone is doing something different. So, I started passing people running in all directions. Something about running around other people makes it a lot easier.
I had a hard time starting that final loop. My body knew my car was right there, and did not want to turn around and run the other direction. But I did, and quickly fell into pace with a few other runners.
As always, the highlight of my Keene run was seeing the Barktriloquist Dog. There is a dog that stands in his driveway and barks at all the runners. But he doesn’t move his mouth. It’s the weirdest thing. So I was excited to see the Barktriloquist at about mile #12.
I was really jazzed for my last 3 miles. I was feeling so good, I actually ran negative splits (I guess there is a first time for anything). My last 3 miles were among my fastest of the day. Everything in my body seemed to be hurting in just the right places: there were no real pains, but everything was just a little stressed.
It turned out to be one of my best long runs… ever. Last year it was always hot, and I didn’t quite put the effort in that I should have. I don’t ever remember finishing a long run and feeling this good. I was kind of waiting for this run to decide if I was really on pace for a fall marathon. I think the answer is yes.
Odds of running the OBX Marathon: 80%
