Long Run

Distance: 15 miles
Time: 2:36:17
Pace: 10:25 min/mi

Comments: With the half-marathon in two weeks, I thought it might be prudent to get a run in with additional distance this weekend. I faded very hard on the last few miles of the Cowtown last month and I would prefer to not repeat that. The target today was 15 miles.

It started off pretty well. I did the first stretch on White Rock Creek Trail and, it turns out, there was a race on it. I ended up getting caught by the leaders of the half-marathon then, after I turned around, the back half of the 5K. Still, it was a good way to get me through the first leg of this effort.

I was feeling tired at the halfway point even though I had kept my pace up very well. I didn't eat this morning and I think that really put me in the hole, energywise. Since battling fatigue was the purpose of this run, I just girded myself for the worst. And it came.

I started to slow pretty significantly past the midway point and the last four miles were brutal. My pace dropped dramatically each of these miles and keeping focused on finishing the damn thing was pretty much all I could do. I was able to do it but it was not pretty by any means.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 38:17
Pace: 9:34 min/mi

Comments: My original plan for this week was to put in two regular runs back-to-back and get a total of three in. But, with the prospect of a 15 miler this weekend, that sounds like a bit too much too soon. So I defaulted to my regular routine of one run every other day.

Today was a pretty satisfying effort. I didn't look at the watch at all; just ran it by feel. As a result, the splits were a little all over the place but I seem to be gravitating to that 9:30 min/mi baseline. I'd like to get that lower sooner rather than later but the mileage takes precedence for now.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 37:25
Pace: 9:21 min/mi

Comments: The plan this week is to up the mileage in preparation of the upcoming half. I've done pretty good keeping the pace down so I'd like to work on distance a bit.

I didn't really intend to do this run any faster than, say, 10 min/mi pace, but I really hit a nice groove and just kept with it. I wasn't really pushing it (except on the steep uphills) just trying to maintain regular breathing.

And it seems there is a waiver for the Dallas leash law in this neighborhood during school hours or something. Got chased by no less than three on this run while their owners stood by and watched. Might have to start carrying pepper spray like I did in Peru.

Long Run

Distance: 10 miles
Time: 1:34:53
Pace: 9:29 min/mi

Comments: With a race and a fast workout this week, I decided to err on the side of caution and give myself two days off before the long run. I wasn't even sure how long I wanted to do this one but finally settled on a 10 mile White Rock Lake Loop.

Today was a bit dour and, temperature-wise, not too bad at all. There were folks on the trail the whole course but never so many it became an ordeal. And a lot of them were clearly race training, so they tended to blow by me before I really knew they were there. So I got to really concentrate on my effort.

My plan was to use the first two miles to warm up and keep the first half of the run under 10 minute pace. After that I wanted to push it in order to get a negative split and then really make an effort on the final two miles. It went pretty much exactly like that. The second half of the run was three minutes faster than the first half and the final mile was under 8:30 pace. And I felt pretty much in control of it the whole way.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 34:37
Pace: 8:39 min/mi

Comments: I've been considering what type of training I need in order to improve my performance in the half-marathon this month. Obviously, the main area is to get faster. So I need to do some runs that push my pace a little. No time like the present to start.

I have no intention to start track workouts or anything, just regular runs that are sub 9 minute per mile average pace (my old "training run" threshold). Needless to say, I took care of that today and some -- even with the hills on my routine course. I'll do a longer run this weekend but dial back that pace considerably.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 41:27
Pace: 10:21

Comments: This went surprisingly well for my post-race run. My legs took a beating during the half-marathon and my hopes for this effort were not high. I was plenty stiff getting started and a little concerned about a couple aches might prove to be more substantial.

After the halfway point, though, things settled down and I got into a acceptable groove. The last mile went so well I had to really concentrate in order to keep my pace down at the finish. My legs still have a bit of post-race ache but not nearly the amount of fatigue that hit me after the 10K.

The 2018 Cowtown Half Marathon

Race: The Cowtown Half Marathon
Watch Time: 2:03:41
Official Time: 2:03:37
Pace: 9:26 min/mi

Comments: Ah, yes. The Cowtown. We meet again. This was my fourth time to run Fort Worth's premier running event. I planned on finally taking the leap and doing the full marathon last year but work intervened.

I've been back running for a good two months now, so I figured I should be ready to handle a half-marathon. I haven't done anything further than nine miles recently but I felt the overall mileage had me ready to go. Still, not putting in the distance had me concerned so I planned to keep my pace down as much as possible for the first half.

Of course I ignored that and blasted out some stupidly fast splits up to mile eight. In my defense, I really didn't feel like I was going over fast since my breathing never got labored or anything like that. And I took advantage of every downhill to grab up a few more seconds on my pace.

The problem, and I knew it from past experience, was mile nine. This is a long incline where the road goes over the  Paddock Viaduct and approaches the courthouse in downtown. The overall incline runs about a mile but the steep part is a quarter mile where the elevation increases about 100 feet. It sucks.

And it beat my ass again. I tried to keep is slow and conserve my energy but it just sucked the energy out of my legs. At that point I though a sub-two-hour time was possible and I worked to make up some time on the next stretch which is pretty level. But the hill on Lancaster Ave. approaching Summit Ave. finished me.

From that point on I was just gritting through the pain and trying to finish in a respectable manner. My pace slipped a full minute in the last mile (to about what I did on the mile up the hill) but I found enough in the tank to run it in at the end.

Overall, I'm pretty happy with the effort. The time is really not that far off of my last effort here and gives me plenty of room for improvement. One thing is for certain, I'll have to really think hard about trying a full later this spring though.

Despite the devil hill, I do love this race. It's a nice course (mostly), the organization is top notch and folks are always friendly. Hopefully I can take a stab at the full next year.

Fitness Run

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

Comments: The race is fast approaching and, while I don't think I can do much more to improve my conditioning, I need to get my weekly runs in. With the recent weather that meant going out in cold and wet conditions. I hoped there would be a long enough break in the rain for me to squeeze in my run but, of course, that wasn't happening.

Since I am technically tapering, I did not intend to run this particularly fast but the cold spurred me on a bit. Partially to keep warm and partially to get the thing over with. Still, I didn't overdo it by any means. Just a pretty workmanlike effort on my way to the starting line.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 40:13
Pace: 10:03 min/mi

Comments: Storms are forecast to be pushing through the area intermittently over the next few days. So getting a run in will be a matter of taking advantage of breaks in the weather. I got a chance pretty early this morning so I took it.

The storms are feeding off high moisture in the area and I felt it on this run. Temperatures were a bit warmer (but not insanely hot like it will get later in the year) and I could feel the drag on my legs and then see it on the pace which eroded drastically every mile. I'll chalk this one as an early warm-weather acclimation run.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 39:26
Pace: 9:51 min/mi

Comments: It rained most of yesterday morning and, after considering it some, I realized I felt pretty fatigued. So I opted for an extra day off. It works well with my plan for every-other-day until two days prior to the race next weekend as well.

This run was pretty consistent. The first downhill mile was a reasonable effort and the second slightly faster. The first and second uphill mile went very much the same. That speaks a lot to my improving conditioning.

The strength I have built over the past six weeks is making more of a difference, which I could really feel on the final mile. The big question for next week is how well my stamina has come along.