San Antonio Half: Week 14 - I'm a Wuss

Distance: 10.06 miles
Time: 1 hr. 49 mins. 18 secs <--- Another PR for 10 miles...woot!
Route: Clyde Fant Parkway Trail

I'll admit it. I'm a wuss when it comes to running in less than ideal conditions. A little drizzle? Sure thing. A little breeze? Bring it on. Fog? Not a problem. Thunder, lightning and gale force winds? Um yeah. Not so much. This week, I kept a close eye on the weather forecasts. It was looking like there might be some good storms brewing for Sunday, so I decided to move my long run to Saturday this week. Jenn is in Memphis with some girlfriends this weekend, so I was on my own. Saturday it was.

Friday afternoon, my brother-in-law, Matt, called and asked me what was for dinner. He's been down at Ft. Polk (about 2 hrs south of here) for the past week and we've been trying to figure out a way to squeeze a visit in. When he called, he told me that he was going to come up, visit, spend the night and then head back down to Ft. Polk in the morning. One condition: Don't tell Mark. I was too excited, so I had to tell the kids, who were equally as excited. They adore their Uncle Matt (and he's pretty much my favorite BIL). I received a call from Mark telling me that he was on his way home early...I did some quick calculating and realized that they would both be getting in at the same time. Lauren almost spilled the beans, but I'd like to think we pulled off the surprise pretty good. It was so nice to see Matt and have a kick back family night! I debated switching my run back to Sunday, but decided to keep it for Saturday. Odds are, everyone would still be asleep and just waking up by the time I got back, so I wouldn't miss anything.

I woke up at 4:45am anxious to get the run going and get home in time to visit and get the kiddos ready for their soccer games. Lauren's game was scheduled for 9am and it takes us about 20 minutes to get there. Basically, I needed to be home no later than about 7:50am in order to get showered and fed. I hit the trail and realized that in my haste, I left my Nike+ receiver at home. Thankfully, I always wear my sport watch, so I just hit the shuffle on the iPod and started the timer. It was a beautiful morning. A little more humid than usual and it was a little warm. I was glad that I chose the short sleeves this morning.

I've realized that I definitely enjoy running on Sundays because the trail is usually void of life. Saturdays are insane...even at 5:30am! Today was especially so, as there was a crew setting up for a road race at the boat launch. The Autumn Breeze 5K and 10K. I had signed up for the 10K, but after looking at the calendar of events and what time it was slated to kick off, there was really no way that I could do it. But, I got a pretty sweet sweatshirt out of it and I ran along the course, so it was a win-win for me. :) When I hit my turn around, I shot a Vanilla Gingerbread Gu (AWESOME!) and off I went again. There were so many people of the trail that at one point, I ended up running off the trail just to avoid running into anyone. I guess all of the running clubs around town get together on Saturday mornings. There were at least two clubs out there.

When I hit mile 7, I felt like I was flying. I didn't feel tired at all and just kept on trucking. I hit the end and felt really good. My legs were tired, but the spirit was good. I looked at my time and realized that I hit another PR for 10 miles...only by about 30 seconds, but hey, a PR is a PR and I'll take what I can get. I'm definitely ready for San Antonio. I'm getting really excited for this race. I haven't done an individual race like this for awhile, so I'm looking forward to it. I'm also looking forward to seeing my friend cross the finish line for the first time. I'm so proud of her and everything she has accomplished. One more long run, one taper run and then the race. Bring. It. On.