Looking Up

I met at the GRC for a huge group run on Saturday morning that consisted of: Sam, Max, Murphy, Dylan, Reaves, Dirk, Ernst, Dickson, newcomer Chris Sloane and tri phenom Desiree Ficker. It's great to have so many people together for a long run. We took it fairly easy for the first 30 minutes and picked it up on certain parts of the run, however, by the time we got to the National Zoo (approx 10 miles) we were still all packed together. Then we trucked down Zoo Hill like a deranged mob of half naked lunatics. Families cover the eyes of their children while the prairie dogs turn and stare. PMurphy should be knighted for placing Gatorade at the bottom of the hill. We sucked it down and then some of us proceeded to pick up the pace (pre-described) and hammer our way towards the Potomac. I don't have a Garmin, but my fox-like instincts suggest Reaves and I ran 5:45 pace for about 25-30 minutes. While crossing Memorial Bridge into Virginia (by the way, I think this is the first run I've done where I've run in DC, MD and VA in one run) the pace (and the temperature) began to heat up. My eyes widened and an Elvis-like snarl formed on the right side of my lip which remained until the end of our surge. My cadence quickened; I found new life in my stride and I pounded it back to the Key Bridge. We eased it up and jogged the last 15 minutes for a total of 2 hours. A solid run. It was great to have so many bodies out there; it certainly makes the run go by faster.

After the run, I drove to Colonial Beach, VA for yet another bachelor party. I drank about 43 Budlights (and a ceremonial shot of rum laced with Tabasco sauce) while playing tackle football in the water and being dragged around on a tube by a jet ski. In the middle of the night we canoed to a bar across the harbor and watched the local gentry boogey and have a good time. I woke up and felt as if someone had beaten me with a sledge hammer. Every muscle was sore (as a result of football and being tossed around by the jet ski), and I decided to wait until the evening to run. When I finally got to it, I ran an easy hour on the Rock Creek Trail in Rockville. I found some new trails. It took me awhile to warm up, but in the last few minutes I began to feel great. A good sign leading into a new week.

78 last week.