inching higher

Whew! a much better week of running! Tuesday did something different and drove to meet jeff @ silver comet trail. going during week means after work, in rush hour traffic. well worth it. we ran a “fast” 4 in 90 degree heat. felt great!! so glad to have my buddy there to push me! thanks, jeffro!!
Wednesday was treadmill run w/ incline intervals at increasing speeds.
Thursday was outside again in some HEAT. It typically gets very hot in Atlanta in August and the trend continues. You may think “what is the big shock” being that it is summer, but lemme tell ya, it had not been ALL THAT hot here until recently. Did Thursday run through Emory University area, Druid Hills. So beautiful. 2nd time recently I have run through the campus; makes me wanna go back to school for a few minutes and be a student again…carrying my backpack, studying in libraries, being w/ other students and hashing over some tough material…only for a few minutes, then….the moments passes.
Beautiful campus. Quiet right now. Feels very scholarly. Anyways, good week-day runs and then the weekend came.
As has been the case for a while now, difficult for me to get up early on saturdays. Even with the knowing I will face hotter conditions, I just cannot get my ass outta bed earlier. So, I suffer. Suffered nicely for 5 miles thru Ansley, Midtown, Piedmont Park. Hadn’t run over there in a while. Missed it. Ansley – another gorgeous neighborhood. Wider streets, stunning older homes, impeccable gardens, etc.. From the first step til my last, there was absolutely NO relief. Felt like a wet oven right on my face. Very happy when it was completed. Felt like i “conquered” something..if even for a few minutes!
Sunday: Jeff and I decided when we were together earlier in week that we would go further out on Silver Comet Trail, just because. Rushed outta bed at 6:20am to meet him by 7am. Luckily, we were both a bit late. We had all our stuff; water paks, ice, gels. We drove to approx 20 mile marker of trail and headed west. Amazing how much less populated this portion of trail was….no other runners, only cyclists. It was just as beautiful as the other sections I have been on. Very peaceful. Lush. And it seemed like the trail could just go on and on forever. We started just before 8am and it was already Hot/Humid and it just kept rising. We didn’t talk as much as usual, which was fine with me…i think we were conserving our energy! We had aimed for 13, but at the 12 mile mark i stopped and jeff followed suit. I wasn’t in any real pain, I was just VERY tired and I didn’t want to keep running that last mile and have it be a shitty mile. Our pace was solid at 10:15/mile. perfect for a long run. It was a good change of scenery and good to have my buddy with me. After changing clothes and sitting for few minutes, we found an IHOP and devoured some pretty good breakfast! Here are some before and after pics.

Happy and Raring to Go!

why did u make me run that far?

damn, I am tired!