Sunday Run

Reporting back as promised.

This morning we did our final long steady distance run in prep for next week's Seattle Half. There was frost on the pumpkin, ice on the road and a nip in the air. Crisp, beautiful and invigorating. We had non-environmental issues to tend to as well, Stephanie and her painful piriformis and me with the knee. I chose compression socks, ACL/patella tape and neoprene wrap and she opted for three ibuprofen and oatmeal. From this strategic training intel, can you guess who is the conservative and who is the liberal? We have this in common: We are both most grateful for the opportunity to enjoy our good health and fitness in such beautiful surroundings. This despite the periodic reminders from hips and knees to stretch, rest, recover, train smart and avoid black ice.

Our route is shown above, covering a touch over twelve with one decent climbing test and a lot of rolling terrain. Was a great way to start the day and/or end the week.

Tomorrow is the first day of our newly devised Thanksgiving Week festivities. The idea is to have a different theme every day that asks us to remember how lucky and blessed we are to live where we do and, further, to do what we love.

There will come a day folks, when our hips, knees, backs, feet, hearts or lungs can no longer tolerate this pounding and training trauma. A day when it becomes apparent that the hook on the wall is where we hang 'em. The dreaded day when we transition back to spectators.

Please join me in fighting that good fight. Anything we can do to postpone, delay, avert, fend or outright stop the atrophy and decay of the aging process is gold. The clock is running dear VBA, please, please, let us use our brief time together wisely.

We start tomorrow morning at 0530 with Thanksgiving Week, Day One spin in the House of Mirth. You don't want to miss this one (or any other).

This just in: Longtime VBAer and my IMC training pardner Bob P, turned in an outstanding 3:28 today in the Philadelphia Marathon, qualifying for Boston, 2012! Yea, Bob!!!

Pic: 0755 Crystal Springs. Ten ducks head towards the morning sun and Mt. Rainier. Five minutes later we headed towards a faster finish at the Seattle Half.