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23 and Me February

January was a successful month for running. Through Fall I managed to run about sixty miles each month. With a slight improvement each month through December.

In January I ran just over 91 miles. It wasn’t without aches and pains, but it was run with little doubt. I was confident as I pushed the mileage higher that I was on a trajectory towards a 100 mile month in February.

Even with the aches and pains, I showed up on Sunday and ran most of the miles. And I ran 4 to 6 miles Tuesday day night and a few times managed another 5 miler on Thursday or Friday night.

But on February 5th during our SLR 6 I ran into a problem. My knee has been bothering me for a while, but this time it felt different.

My Physical Therapist, Dr. Sarah Marchionne, at Fitzgerald Physical Therapy in Melrose checked my knee thoroughly. I was relieved when she said it was probably an over-use injury. This made sense since I had been ramping up the miles.

February 23 Running

The first run in February was The Sunday Long Run 6 which was a 16.5 course.

My knee had been bothering me from pushing it a little too much the week before. I was feeling strong, so I ran that way. During a few of my runs I even tossed in a few strides and they felt pretty good.

By the time I reached mile 10 of SLR 6, I knew it was a bad idea and run all 16.5 miles. Our next water stop was only 3.5 miles away and I figured I could get there without causing any permanent damage.

I knew exactly where I was going and what the hills were like. There were a few times when I had to walk and my Garmin flaked out on me.

When I look at the map for that run, Mile 11 is a little short, Mile 13 is missing and it looks like I ran well over 15 miles. But Garmin gives me 13.6 miles which I literally felt in my bones was the correct distance!

Not my first tough run of this training program but it felt like the toughest run. When I got to the next water stop, I got a ride from Bobby Taylor back to my car! At mile 10 I knew my PT would say, why did you keep running?

When I got into my car I felt like I had run 15+ miles.

As I was running in from Mile 10 I was thinking about what I would tell my PT. When did the pain begin? When did it get worse?

Would I be honest? Should I be? Would she be pissed or disappointed at my foolishness?

You can read about when the pain started in my Road to Boston SLR 6 post, so I wont re-hash it here.

Marathon Training Week 7

After my tough SLR 6, I took week 7 off and manned a water stop on Saturday.

The club ran the Super Sunday 5K and 10K on Sunday so we moved the long run to Saturday. Yes, a lot of people ran 14 miles on Saturday and many ran the 10K on Sunday.

I registered to run the 10K, but Saturday afternoon when I picked up my bib I switched to the 5K. My knee was still wonky and I didn’t want to push it.

My goal is to get to the starting line in some sort of running condition.

I started the Super Sunday 5K in the back and as we started out I just let people pass me. I had a compression sleeve on my knee and wanted to see how things went.

After about a half-mile I realized that me knee was fine, so I picked up my pace on First street and had a pretty good race. We had 42 club members run or volunteer at the race. And I think everyone had a good time.

I had a good 4.5 mile club run Tuesday night, had PT on Wednesday and ran a little over five miles Thursday night.

Marathon Training Week 8

Sunday Long Run for week 8 was an 18.1 mile course that I knew well. It is a long run and has plenty of hills, but the turns are easy to spot with few rotaries or 5 road intersections. I knew I wouldn’t get lost, but I was not sure how my knee would hold up.

On advice of Dr. Sarah I had been wearing a compression sleeve during my runs for the past few weeks. It did help my knee but I was still having that joint pain.

You can read in my blog post for week 8 that I decided to cut 18.1 miles down to 12.9. I even had to walk the last third of a mile.

That Tuesday night I ran a conservative out and back 4 miler with very few hills at an 11:10 pace. Really slow for me, but I needed to get in those miles.

We had some weather on Thursday which actually left snow and ice on the ground. I decided not to risk slipping on the ice and didn’t run Thursday night.

Marathon Training Week 9

For Sunday Long Run Number 9, we dropped down to 16 miles. In a marathon training program every two or three weeks you drop back on the miles to give your legs a bit of a break.

The week before I only ran 12.9 miles, so even 16 miles was a bump up for me. It’s like falling behind on a hike. When the group takes a break you’re still hiking up the trail. And when you finally reach them, they are ready to head out.

On Saturday I bought a Shock Doctor knee brace, Level 3. This sleeve straps to your calf and thigh and has hinges at the knee. Pretty heavy duty stuff and not something I ever dreamed I’d be wearing. Am I getting old?

It was painful from the first steps and early on I knew 16 miles was not in the cards for me that day. You can read the details in my week 9 post.

That Tuesday night I ran 4.3 miles with the club at a 10:30 pace. Not too bad and the knee brace seemed to make a difference. It was the last day of February and I wanted to hit 60 miles for the month. I ran 60.39 miles in February.

About 31 fewer miles than January and not the 100 miles I was shooting for. But sometimes you need to make adjustments if you want to keep on the road to The Boston Marathon.

23 and Me February 2023, 2023 Boston Marathon Training

Run well my Friends

Andy

Road to Boston SLR 9

It’s hard to believe that we’re almost two-thirds through our training for the 2023 Boston Marathon!

The Road to Boston continues with week 9 of our Sunday Long Run Program, SLR.

We are starting to get into some serious mileage as we approach the two-thirds point of our fifteen week program. This week we ran 16 miles which is the shortest distance we will run until we start to taper during week 14.

Anyone who isn’t ready to run a full marathon is beginning to feel it on these progressively longer runs. And I count myself amongst those feeling it each week. Last week I managed 12.6 miles running and a bit of walking to get to 12.9 miles out of a run that was supposed to be 18.1 miles.

Starting the Road to Boston Week 9

Over the past week I only ran four miles on Tuesday night and that was a bit of a challenge. On Wednesday night, my PT suggested a knee brace and did a search to show me a few examples.

Saturday I went to the local Dick’s Sporting Goods and bought a Shock Doctor Level 3 knee brace. Level 1 is basically a compression sleeve but level three has Velcro straps and hinges. I’ve seen people wearing things like this before, and it looked pretty serious.

I wore it around the house Saturday to get a feel for it and make sure I knew how to wear it. On Sunday morning I strapped it on and headed for Melrose.

We had a small crew on this frigid February morning. The snow that fell Saturday was still on the ground Sunday with the temperature holding around 20 degrees. This was our coldest or second coldest day for the Sunday Long Run.

Road to Boston SLR 9, Melrose Running Club, Sunday Long Run Program 2023

I started out slowly as usual, to see how the brace would feel on my knee in real world use. It didn’t feel too bulky or restraining like I thought it would. So far so good.

As we ran down Main Street I chatted with a few people but ended up running most of the distance by myself. I used to run at the end of the fast group. Now I’m running a bit ahead of the slower group.

By the time we reached our first water stop at about 3.7 miles, I knew my knee was not ready for 16 miles. I wasn’t sure how many miles I could go. But I took a Honey Stinger, some Gatorade and was on my way.

While I’m familiar with this route, we ran it three weeks ago, I also know there are lots of turns and that I always miss one when I’m on my own.

So, my goal was to keep someone in my sight as much as possible.

There’s Pain in Them Thar Hills

Running hills isn’t usually painful. It can be tough and it can be challenging, but it’s usually not painful.

When you are training with an injury, the first step of a run can be painful. Add some major incline and now you are talking pain.

After our water stop we ran down hill for about a half mile. As I’ve mentioned before, the pounding from running down hill can be more challenging than running up hill. And at the bottom of our hill was another long uphill.

I was happy to have someone in front of me so I didn’t miss any turns. He kept getting father away, but I did my best to keep him in sight.

To cut a bit off of my run I skipped a side road we always take and continued up Highland Ave in Winchester. I’m not sure that I saved my legs any as Highland is one long hill.

The map that we had for this week had two short cuts that we could use if we needed to. I printed the map, but it was wrapped up with a bunch of other stuff in a zipped up pocket. So like a real runner, I just kept on running to the next water stop.

If you look closely at the map below, you can see the dotted lines where the short cuts are.

Road to Boston SLR 9, Boston Marathon 2023

The water stop was at the bottom of the hill where Highland runs into Rt. 38 in Winchester. I had found the pain in the hills of the Winchester Highlands. And I still had miles to run before I could stop.

I had another Honey Stinger and more Gatorade. The guy I was following headed out a bit before I was ready, but I managed to keep him in sight. And then someone else came up and passed me.

Finishing the Road to Boston Week 9

As we ran through Winchester Center my knee was a constant level 5 of pain. I knew that it hurt but I was in that frame of mind where I kept pushing it out of my consciousness.

How do you ignore pain? This ability may seem magic. Who wouldn’t want to be able to do that?

During a long race, you have to put the pain out of your mind. It’s the only way to run through it and keep going. Even the most elite marathon runners will tell you that they feel pain when they are running a marathon race.

Races are different than training runs and the level of pain you can tolerate is different. I don’t remember who but one runner said, “it’s a matter of how much you want it”. During a race we all want “it”, what ever that means at that moment in time.

Running miles 8 and 9 through Winchester Center and climbing the hill out was challenging. It was around this point when I realized I had entered that zone. It’s not that the pain isn’t there it’s just that it’s 2nd or 3rd on the list of things the old brain is working on.

Number 1 was keeping the guy in front of my in sight. I knew we were headed back to the first water stop. But even the guy in front of me stopped at two intersections to get his bearings. My “it” was not getting lost.

At the water stop I finally looked at the map and decided to use the second short cut on the map. Instead of running 16 miles I ran 13.1 miles. I basically cut 5K off of this long run.

As I ran down West Wyoming towards Main Street in Melrose two other guys on this long run passed me. They were running at a pretty good clip and they looked strong. A quick word of encouragement kept me running even as the road turned up.

You might just as well run a Half Marathon

When I got to my car, Lee Romprey was there changing up after his run. I told him I ran 12.89 and he said I’d be crazy not to jog around the parking lot to get in a half marathon distance.

Part of me just wanted to go home. But when he said, “you’ll feel so accomplished running a half”, I knew he was right.

So like an old shot up bomber trailing smoke from both engines, I jogged an additional .21 miles with a great deal of effort. And I stuck the landing!

While I was truing up my half marathon distance Matt Kerton rolled in. He had run the full 16 miles and seemed to be in pretty good shape. He did have a few icicles in his beard and kind of looked like Jack Frost!

I hung out with the guys for a bit and celebrated my “half marathon.” Lee was right. It felt pretty good to go the distance and not settle on a random number because I was beat.

This really was a mind over reality run. My knee was at level 5 most of the run and spiked up to 7 or so a few times. But when you are miles from your car or anyone else’s car, what are you going to do? Call Uber?

Run well my Friends

Andy

Catching up on email

Some of you may have noticed that I liked or commented on one of your posts from a few weeks ago, or months ago.

I follow many blogs and find it impossible to comment on them all. There’s just not enough time in a day.

So, a few times a year I go through my entire inbox of the email account I use for WordPress.

It seems like I just did this over the holidays. And that was only 6 or 7 weeks ago?

I’m pretty good about reading email every day but it is too much to keep up with. And I don’t like to leave crappy comments, though I’m sure you’ve seen one or two from me.

If I leave a “like” it means I read your post and I’m just saying hello and letting you know I actually read your post. I don’t always have something insightful to say.

I also just downloaded the new Jetpack mobile app and am writing this post on my phone.

While blogging on your phone may be convenient, I don’t see how you can do much editing. You can’t see much text on the screen.

I’ll have to test the formatting tools next time and see how you add photos and such.

Thanks for reading,

Andy

Road to Boston SLR 8

Long runs don’t always go as expected, but sometimes you get what you need.

After running a water stop for SLR 7, I jumped back into running the Road to Boston SLR 8.

The Road to Boston goes through Injuryville

Many runners get some sort of an injury while training for a marathon.

Running a marathon is a big under-taking and if you don’t prepare properly there is usually hell to pay on Marathon day. Once committed to running 26.2 miles there isn’t much that will stop most runners. Even pain.

I can’t say that I’ve ever run a marathon that didn’t involve pain at some point. Even the elite runners will tell you that.

The idea behind training and putting in those grueling training miles is to push the pain point out as many miles as you can into the race.

Over the years I’ve solved most of the things that can go wrong during the actual marathon, but I have not found a fool-proof way to avoid injuries.

Running Road to Boston SLR 8

The pain in my knee changed recently, so I cut back all running last week and only ran the Super Sunday 5K with the running club. My knee felt fine the entire race.

But I know that long distances and down-hills will beat the shit out of my left knee. And this week’s run was both hilly and 18.1 miles!

Since this is my twentieth rodeo, I know what to do when the bull throws me into the dirt.

So I went into today’s run with caution and low expectations.

I didn’t know if I’d make it out of the parking lot, to the first water stop or by some miracle, the entire route.

Starting the Road to Boston SLR 8

Sunday Long Run 8 with the Melrose Running Club. Road to Boston SLR 8

Kneeling for this photo was a little painful for all of us. Not too many youngsters in this group.

As we ran out of the parking lot I took it really slow, around a 12 minute pace.

Even after stretching, my knee was tight. But I was pretty sure that it would loosen up after a bit of running. And that’s what happened.

I didn’t feel like sprinting, but I was pretty sure I would make it to our first water stop.

The segment to Breakheart Reservation I ran mostly with Bobby Taylor and Joe Winslow. They were looking to run 10+ minute miles which was fine with me. But, we had to intentionally do that. We’d get talking, I’d check my watch and we would be running 9:20.

2023 SLR 8 Course Map, 2023 Boston Marathon training

Just before mile three we reached the road into Breakheart. It seemed to come up quickly and I was grateful for that.

After the water stop most people went left to get the hills over with. A bunch of us went right to run them old school.

As we went around the loop we got to see everyone else coming from the other direction.

I was able to maintain my speed pretty well going up the hills. But going down had to be controlled.

People think running down hill is easy, or easier. But it involves a lot of pounding and that usually gets your quads or knees.

On a steep decline you can kind of get out of control, go to fast and really slam your legs. It’s not good.

I found my self extending my right leg and holding my left leg back so as to minimize the impact on my left knee. It’s generally not a good idea to alter your stride like that, but I was only doing it on the downhills.

Finishing the Road to Boston SLR 8

We finished the loop in the parking lot back at Water Stop 1.

I knew that the longer I staid the tighter my knee would get. So I took a cup of Gatorade and cut the conversation short.

Joe Winslow and I made our way down the park road and turned right onto the Fellsway. He was doing okay and was nice enough to hang back and keep me company.

At the next corner, at mile seven, we took a right onto Main Street in Saugus.

This is a long, mostly uphill, slog to Wakefield High and our next water stop.

Joe and I have daughters in their twenties, so we always have plenty to talk about. It was fun.

In the parking lot of Wakefield High I decided to cut the run short. We were just short of mile nine and I knew that 18 miles was not in the cards.

Joe was going to run long so I headed out to my short cut. Dan Slattery was also going to cut it short and headed out a minute or so after I did.

All the way up Farm Road in Wakefield I expected Dan to catch up to me, but he didn’t catch me until Water Stop 4 at Nick’s Pizza.

My knee was aching at level 2-3 now and I knew that hanging around was not going to help.

Just like the previous water stop, the first 10-20 steps were painful. The promise of less pain was the only way to keep going, and we were headed for another freaking hill!

Dan and I ran in the last three miles or so pretty much together. When he picked up the pace at times, I just let him go. As he said, it was really about getting in the time on my feet.

As we got into down town Melrose he went ahead and at 12.6 miles I decided to walk. Even that hurt!

We chatted a bit in the parking lot and headed our separate ways. A run well done.

Run well my Friends,

Andy

New England Marathons Winter 2023

A short list is better than no list of winter marathons!

Updated March 13^th, 2023

Astronomical Winter 2023 officially began on Thursday, December 21st at 10:27 PM EST and will last through March 20th. This link is to an article that nicely explains the seasons.

The New England Winter Marathon season for 2023 concluded. Some races have posted dates and opened registration for races in December 2023 through March 2024. But many race were run recently and the organizers are probably enjoying some time off!

New England Marathons Winter

Roxbury Marathon 2023

* November | 8:30 AM | Saturday – see you in 2023

Hurlburt Recreation Area – 18 Apple Lane, Roxbury CT

This scenic, hilly, no-frills, early winter 26.2 mile foot race will cost you only $45 or $35 for the Half.

Registration for 2023 should open in September.

In 2019, only 47 runners finished the marathon. In 2022 only 36 runners finished the marathon and 38 runners finished the half marathon. This race is not for the casual runner.

Here is a report on the 2017 race.

Race Results 2022

Millinocket Marathon and Half 2023

2 December | 10 AM | Saturday – 2023

31-33 Penobscot Ave Millinocket, Maine

2023 registration is open!

In 2015, twelve runners ran the marathon and 42 finished the Half and it has taken off from there.

The race was cancelled in 2020 but in 2021, 154 runners finished the marathon and 944 completed the half. In 2022 176 finished the marathon and 1191 finished the half.

This race continues to grow in popularity and make contributions to the Millinocket region.

Our FREE marathon & half was started in 2015 to help a struggling northern Maine mill town that has been devastated by the closing of their major employer. Do not run Millinocket for what you get instead RUN MILLINOCKET for what you GIVE. Please do not take spots in our race unless you are serious about doing your very best to show up (of course we know life happens) but please don’t register just because our race is free. All participants are required to generously patronize Katahdin area businesses in lieu of an entry fee. Our 2016 edition was a tremendous success and we look forward to growing our event in 2017 and all the positive influence it brings!

Millinocket used to be a mill town with two paper mills. When I was growing up the economy and the town were vibrant. The high school had competitive sports teams and they were just another city in Maine.

Now the mills are gone and times have changed in Millinocket. The organizers of this race seek to draw runners from near and far to help inject a little economic life into this Northern Maine town.

As they say in the quote above, don’t sign up just because it is free. Sign up because you want to run the race and provide some stimulus to the local economy while you are there.

Race Results 2015 to 2022

Boston Prep 16 Miler and 5 Miler 2023

* January | 10:00 AM | Sunday – see you in 2024

West Running Brook Middle School – Derry, NH

I’ve run this race twice and it’s been very cold or freezing both times. The first time I ran the race the school parking lot was glazed in black ice. I kept sliding down the parking lot while waiting for the race to begin.

Bring your big boy shorts for this run!

The 27th Annual Northeast Delta Dental Boston Prep – this moderately challenging 16-miler is ideally scheduled for runners training for the Boston Marathon, any other spring marathon or a Runner looking for a mid-winter challenge! Are you a regular runner but not ready for a full 16? Try the “BP-Lite,” which offers a taste of the Boston Prep experience on a 5 mile course!

2024 registration is not open yet. For 2023 it was, $75 for the 16-miler and $40 for the 5-Miler through January 20th.

Proceeds Benefit the Greater Derry Track Club’s Kids Summer Fun Run Program.

Everyone should put this race on their bucket list. It really is an experience not to be missed.

Here is my 2015 race recap.

PEAK Snow Devil Winter Races

* February | 8:00 AM | Saturday – see you in 2024

Pittsfield, VT

This is a snow shoe event where you can run a 100 miler, 100K, a Marathon, Half Marathon or a 10K.

The 100 miler begins at 6AM and the 100K begins at Noon on February 5th The Marathon begins at 7:30AM, Half at 8AM, 10K at 8:30AM and 5K at 9AM all on February 6th.

Snow shoes are required and this race is not for the faint of heart. The course is a 6.5 mile loop with 1200 feet vertical. Only 13 runners finished the marathon in 2018!

2023 registration was:$175 for the 100 Miler, $120 for the 100K, $85 for the Marathon, $65 for the Half, $55 for the 10K.

MV Winter Classic and Amity Relay

* February| 11:00 AM | Saturday – see you in 2024

Vineyard Haven, MA

The MV Classic is a 20 mile run and the Amity Relay is a 2-person 10 mile run each. taking place on Martha’s Vineyard.

2023 registration was: $85 for the Classic and $160 for the Amity Relay.

Registration includes: Race T-shirt, a finisher’s medal, bag check at the starting line, a post race meal, busing back to the boat, and a great experience overall.

The MV Winter Classic and Amity Relay is a “must race” for die-hard runners of many levels. From highly competitive athletes looking for a test of their Boston and spring marathon readiness to dedicated recreational runners seeking to extend the length of their monthly long-run, this race offers the chance to combine a visit to one of the East Coast’s most beautiful shore communities with a race on a fast, USATF certified course.

The MV Winter Classic and Amity Relay will benefit several Island youth programs. Proceeds from your registration fee will be distributed among these programs to help offset expenditures and rising costs of operation.

Martha’s Vineyard is an island and the race website provides some directions for you to make ferry reservations.

2023 Hyannis Marathon, Half Marathon, 10K & Marathon Team Relay

* March | 10:00 AM | Sunday – see you in 2024

Hyannis, MA

Now in it’s 41st year, the course is paved and mostly flat and gentle, with a few rolling areas along an an extremely picturesque and historical route.

2023 registration was: $75 for the Marathon, $65 for the Half, and $60 for the 10K. The Marathon relay is $130 per team.

The marathon has a registration limit of 400 runners, so don’t wait.

These races are USATF Certified:

USATF Certification # MA11001RN – Marathon
USATF Certification # MA11002RN – Half Marathon
Boston Marathon Qualifier – 6 Hour Course Time Limit

2020 ALL Race Results

The Ocean’s Run Marathon, Half Marathon, 4 Miler & Kids’ Fun Run

TBD March | 8:00 AM | Saturday – cancelled

Misquamicut State Beach, Westerly, RI

All courses are USATF Certified and the marathon is a Boston Qualifier! This race has always been a great tune-up for Boston and other late Spring Marathons.

This race winds through the quiet Westerly beach communities of Misquamicut and Weekapaug. There are water views at nearly every stretch of the race. With hardly any climbs to speak of, this race is fast and furious!!

The race starts and finish at the Misquamicut State Beach! A portion of the proceeds to benefit The Westerly Track and Athletic Club!

Registration for 2022 has not opened. In 2019 registration was: Marathon – $90.00,1/2 Marathon – $60.00 and 4 Miler – $30.

I’ve checked their website several times and I don’t see any updates since 2019. We may have lost another New England running event.

The 2023 Hampton Half

* March | 10:00 AM | Sunday – see you in 2024

Hampton Beach, NH

I know it’s not a marathon, but who wants to sit around until spring?

I’ve run this half three times and it’s one of my favorite halfs.

It’s often cold and sometimes there is a cold breeze off of the Gulf of Maine. Sometimes it’s just a beautiful day.

Here is my 2019 race Recap.

This is a USATF measured and certified course.

2023 registration is open!

If you are a race director and I have missed your race please contact me at: [email protected] If you are not a race director and know of a marathon that I missed, please contact me at the same email.

Run well my Friends and try to keep warm!

Andy

Road to Boston SLR 6

Some runs are just tougher than others.
Even the best plans can get shredded.

The Road to Boston SLR 6 was a bumpy one!

I went into week 5 with expectations and a plan to try a few new things. Overall, everything worked out great and I was happy with my run.

Running SLR 6

The goal for Sunday Long Run 6 was 16.5 miles, which is quite a jump up from 12.6 miles the previous week.

My plan was to run 10 minute miles for as long as I could and look to average out at 10:10 or so per mile.

Unfortunately, my knee bothered me all week. I probably pushed it too hard on SLR 5. Then on Tuesday night a ran a pretty aggressive 10K.

My PT worked on my knee Wednesday night and I wore a compression sleeve on my knee for several hours each night and took Ibuprofen each day.

By run time on Sunday morning my left knee still had not settled down.

I did yoga on Saturday and Sunday morning before the run and did more stretching in the parking lot.

I started the run right after the group photo so I could run slow and not be at the end of the group. For the first mile or so I ran basically by my self and managed a 10:012 pace, mile 2 was 10:25 due to a small hill.

Then I started running with my old running buddy Jeff Rushton.

We used to run together all the time and took turns pushing each other.

This week Jeff pulled me along at a pace I didn’t really want to run, but it was fun talking with Jeff like we used to always do. Miles 3 and 4 were 9:46.

During mile 5 we started to get into the hills in Winchester. Running up them was tough, but the downhills hammered my left knee.

By the time we got to our second water stop just before mile 7, I told Jeff and the other guys we caught up to, to just run ahead.

As we looped back through Winchester and through the center of town, I could see that they were getting further away at each turn.

My goal was to keep them in sight as this route has a lot of turns that often mess me up.

Running in SLR 6 on my own

I had been loosing these guys from mile 7 to 10 and was essentially running on my own.

I could see them headed out of the next water stop before I even got there.

Paul Locke asked me how I was doing and I told him about my knee acting up and expressed my doubts.

I knew if I hung out too long my muscles would tighten up and my knee wouldn’t be my only problem.

Starting back up after that stop was hard. My knee was tight and ached at probably level 5. My PT would had told me to stop, but I still had over six miles to run.

By the time I turned onto Park street I couldn’t see anyone in the Peloton. I knew I was running to the next big intersection, but wasn’t 100% on what to do when I got there.

This intersection is where Park Street turns into North Border Road and there are ramps to I-93 north and south. Cars can come at you from several directions here.

I was pretty sure that I was following Park as it turned into North Border Road, but just to be sure I stopped my watch and took out my phone to check the email.

I re-started my watch and hobbled down the road.

At the intersection by Spot Pond I took the right and knew the rest of the route.

As I ran up the hill by Spot Pond I could feel my energy draining. Fighting pain can take a toll on you.

I had been nibbling on a Honey Stinger waffle and finished it on this section of road. It gave me enough energy to keep running until I got to the I-93 overpass.

I told my self to keep running until I got out from under the bridge and then started walking.

At this point of the course, there isn’t a cut off or short cut. I was on the far side of the pond and there was only one way to get home.

I decided to start running again and kept it up until I got to Elm Street and had to walk most of that street.

I knew that the last water stop was a short distance away at Flynn Rink. While I didn’t really want to stop running, my body was telling me that I needed to.

This wasn’t a marathon and no one was keeping track of my pace or if I even finished.

When I got to Nicole Jacob in the parking lot of the ice rink, I told her I was done.

Eventually Bobby Taylor drove up and I got a ride back to my car from him. I felt bad getting into his nice new truck reeking like a runner.

It felt good to take a shower and know I was done for the day. My only goal for the rest of the day was to re-hydrate and tend to that knee!

Run well my Friends!

Andy