Happily Ever After
Life in The Rural Retreat with a beautiful wife, three cats, garden wildlife, a camera, a computer – and increasing amounts about running
Earlier posts can be found on Adventures of a Lone Bass Player, where this blog began life. Recent entries can be found here.
Still Undecided
by Russell Turner - 21:10 on 23 May 2022
Six days until the Edinburgh Marathon and I’m still undecided about taking part. Today was supposed to be my final test – a 10-mile run/walk from which to judge the state of my feet and general fitness. The weather let me down.
The forecast for the morning was fine, but when I set out it was into a cool, smir-filled breeze which turned into heavier rain by the time I’d covered three miles. Not that it mattered – minutes after setting off I’d downgraded my effort to a five-mile run with no walking.
It was a wise decision. After four miles, sodden shorts were threatening to chafe my thighs and damp socks wreck my feet. Despite that, I pressed on and completed the full five miles. What a hero. I’d even accidentally completed a progression run, with every mile faster than the previous one.
The positives from today were that my feet and I felt fine at the end, and I was confident I would have felt equally good after the full 10 miles. Whether that would continue for another 16.2 is anyone’s guess.
I could try again tomorrow, as the forecast for Wednesday is not promising. Sunday’s for Edinburgh, on the other hand, looks remarkably good: mild, a sunny start changing to cloudy with low chance of rain, and a light northerly breeze which eases the fear of a second half headwind. If the forecast is correct.
Of course we’ve got to get there first. ScotRail’s revised weekday timetable shows our return train on Monday is unaffected by the current upheavals; the weekend version has not yet been revealed, and as we’re going down on Saturday our plans could yet have to change.
None of this is ideal marathon preparation. Decision, decisions.
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