So Long, Long Runs

It's the start of my taper, and I am celebrating with a massive headache. Every time I move a bolt of pain shoots through my brain, which hasn't put me in an active mood. Hopefully it will subside soon, otherwise I might end up writing a really cranky blog.

I ran my last long run with Chris Fudge Sunday morning in Hampton. I initially planned on running for three hours, but work duties and Fudge family requirements whittled my running time down to two-and-a-half hours. Chris had a spectacular run planned for us, though, so I looked forward to the adventure, even if it was a little shorter than expected.

We started at Chris' house on Main Street and veered left at Kredl's (a popular market on Hampton's main drag) onto the Pickwauket Road. I expressed my concern about running on Pickwauket - the road is filled with blind knolls and corners, and fast driving cars appear out of nowhere - but Chris said that if I could make it to the Norton Shore Road in one piece, the view would be worth it. As long as my view didn't include a car heading straight towards me, I would be fine.

Luckily, the road was sparsely populated with cars, and soon I was running down the beautiful Norton Shore Road. The fall colors were in full display, and there were several walkers and bikers enjoying the wonderful day. Dozens of boats were parked in the Kennebecasis River, in what Chris and I decided was some sort of fishing contest. We looked at the river, and at the local real estate, and daydreamed about owning property in the area. I'm not sure how much a house goes for on the Norton Shore Road, but view of the Kennebecasis River is priceless.

Chris' stomach started bothering him around an hour in, and after about fifteen minutes of complaining he decided to pull over for a, um, pit stop. I decided that it was a good place to turn around, but before I did, I told Chris that I would have to include his trip to the roadside powder room in my blog. "I know," he said with a grimace before heading into the woods. And I wonder why it's hard to find running partners.

I ended up running solo for fifteen minutes, and came to the realization that I missed a lot of scenery during the first part of my adventure. Houses I didn't see the first time around popped out of the woods, and spectacular cliffs rose from the roadside. Chris was right; this was spectacular run.

Chris eventually caught up (what was he doing in the woods all that time, anyway), and we made our way back to his place as quickly as possible. I picked up the pace for the second half of the run in hopes of a negative split, but since I didn't know the route very well, I had no idea if I was on target or not. It wasn't until I saw the cars at Kredl's that I knew that a negative split was in sight. I powered the last kilometer back to Chris' house, and finished my run three minutes faster than anticipated. Mission accomplished. Now let's start to taper.

I am cutting back on my mileage, but my blogging schedule will stay the same. I have a lot of writing ground to cover between now and the marathon, so stay tuned!