With two weeks before the Melbourne Marathon today was make or break for making it to the start line. I had to run 32km or pull the pin on a year of training. I made it out the door at 8:30am wearing my race day singlet for the first time. A quiet sense of anticipation and a tingle of fear of the unknown gripped me.
The relentless SE breeze that had been blowing an average of 30kmh the day before and keeping the temperature down had dropped right away. It was a warmish 22C by the time I finished. I maintained a 3:1 ratio all the way to Canning Reserve and felt good at the turn around point (16km). By the time I'd made it back to Essendon (21km), I was starting to feel both the heat and the distance. To counter the heat I poured water over my head at every drinking fountain I encountered. To counter the tyranny of the distance I repeated the following mantra:
"I am the tortoise - I can run all day."
When I made it home it home, I jumped straight into an ice bath. There was no hesitation to jump in this time. I spent the afternoon with Sonia and Angus taking a gentle stroll around Footscray Park feeding the duck.
I now have two weeks to prepare for the marathon itself.
Route: Maribrynong River
Actual Distance - 32km
Time - 3:53:22
Pace - 7:11 min/km
HR/&/Zone: 156/81%/3.5
RPE: 8
Temp: 22C
Total for week: 45 km
Cumulative Total: 489.1 km
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