A New Loop

On Saturday morning I ran with a core group of GRCers through the Mall and Hains Point. Shoulders are still non-existent and sidewalks are only partly cleared, so the going was chaotic at times. Though, we are use to it by now. It was the longest Saturday Store Run in recent memory. Some claimed we ran 13.5...others 14. I suppose we will never know for sure. I topped it off with two (2) egg sandwiches from Mimis, which seemed to be even better than the ones I ate last time.

On Sunday our crew ventured to Sycamore Landing Road waaaay up in Poolesville to get in some distance. Here at least the roads are relatively free of cars and the surroundings are picturesque. We traversed alongside horse farms, polo fields and what typically would be other bucolic scenics...save for the 10" of snow that still cover the ground. The course rolled along and our pack stayed tight until Dirk (and later Karl) decided to put in a tempo around mile 12. Hesitant at first, I decided to pick up the pace around mile 13 and continue the drive ahead (at 5:45s??) until I reached 1:50. I then cooled down and stopped my watch at 2:00:00 on the dot. It's probably a little more than 18, but 18 is what I will call it. I have been driving these roads for years, but have never run them. I am definitely coming back for more of this. The only negative is that there is little (no) natural terrain on the run...though naturally terrain does not exists right now.

The side of my thigh was howling at the end of the run. I did leg swings, high knees and finally "the stick" until the fire was put out. I took a day off for this problem on Thursday, but it didn't seem to help...oh well. The good thing is that the issue does NOT impact me while I am running, rather it causes brief annoyance at the conclusion of some of my runs. Maybe it will work itself out?

I got in 75 last week.