Long Run

Distance: 8 miles
Time: 1:19:13
Pace: 9:54 min/mi

Comments: I was finally feeling reasonably good yesterday after almost a week of post-race fatigue. Still, I didn't make the call to do eight miles until I actually started this one.

The weather was very good this morning except for the wind. While the temperatures warmed significantly during the run, humidity dropped. But the second half was into a headwind which got pretty brisk on miles six and seven. My splits very much reflected it.

Still, I kept the total average pace under ten minutes and that's about all I was shooting for given the condition of my legs recently.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 38:31
Pace: 9:37 min/mi

Comments: So I was pretty much a mess after the run and workout yesterday. Just beaten down tired. It has been more than the follow up to the last two races so I'm not exactly sure what is going on.

So I decided to stick with the back-to-back runs this week and then leave the run this weekend open. I'll make a call on it depending how I feel after today.

This run didn't feel as bad as yesterday but was also a good bit slower. The sun came out for the first time this week and, added to the humidity, made things a little unpleasant. Still, I didn't feel overheated like I did yesterday and doing the race.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 37:08
Pace: 9:16 min/mi

Comments: So the race Sunday really did a number on me. I was sore up to and including this morning. I just don't bounce back from heavy efforts the way I used to. I probably could have put in two easy miles but caution seemed to be the best strategy after that beating of a race.

At one point on Sunday we passed by the entrance to Trinity Overlook Park or, as I know it, the Trinity River bottoms. I've been meaning to do a run in this area for awhile so it seemed like a good day to try it. I overlooked the fact it has rained for the past two days.

So this ended up being a bit of a muddy slog. Luckily the trail wasn't a bog or, worse, underwater. I battled through it and finished significantly faster that I had any reason to expect.

The 2018 Dallas Rock n' Roll Half Marathon

Race: Dallas Rock n' Roll Half Marathon
Watch Time: 2:01:22
Official Time: 2:04:10
Pace: 9:29 min/mi

Comments: This did not go at all as I hoped. After the Cowtown Half Marathon last month I felt I could get a sub-two-hour race if I added a bit of distance. That wasn't the case. At all.

I got a 15 miler in two weeks ago and had been doing regular runs under the target pace I would need to hit for my time. I knew this course threw a few ugly hills into the mix but I hoped I could get ahead of the clock enough while mitigating the slowdown to make it. For the most part, I held to that strategy for the first half of the race.

The problem was the humidity. Temps got into the 70s during the race but the 90+ percent humidity made it a nightmare. I had sweat through my shirt by the first 5K and it didn't get better from there. The humidity zapped my energy as I tried to battle through the two big uphills and, like last month, I got to the final four miles with nothing in the tank.

Once again, I was just hanging on for the very end of this one. The battle was in not stopping and walking the end of it. So not only did I not reach my race goal, I finished a half minute slower than last race. Wonderful.