I wasn’t feeling too good on Sunday, and I ended up getting up for real around mid-morning today. This meant that I was going to have to work late, which meant in turn that the likelyhood of getting in an evening long run was slim. So I decided to run while I was still a little groggy and use it as a (late) wake up call.

Take the standard Mary Moore Searight Park 2km asphalt loop. Pretty boring, right? Now chop off a third of a mile of asphalt and replace it with half a mile of singletrack (a few rocky sections, some tree roots, etc). Doesn’t that sound more appealing? I did ten laps of the new 1.4 mile loop and ended up with 14.24 miles total in 2:18:36, or a 9:44 average. I did a little under 9:30 on the asphalt, and about :30 slower on the trail, which was right what I was going for.

I am a little concerned about my shoes, though. I’m in a new pair of Saucony Triumphs, since my Landreths aren’t giving me quite enough heel support with my touchy achillies. They were fine on my heel, but my forefoot got a little sore after the first 10 miles. I’ll see how they do over the next few weeks.

My current plan, if they don’t settle down, is to wear them for all of my remaining runs - including the 3M half marathon on Sunday - but switch back into my Landreths for the full 26.2 in three weeks time. That should give my tendons a nice break, and provide me with some softer, lighter shoes for the big day.

I hope that your weekends went smoother than mine did!

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