44 Days, 311.5 miles

Wow.. its been a hectic few weeks. Through the layoff and job searching I have still managed to keep pounding away at the miles and I am still hopeful Paris is going to happen. I havent had much chance to keep the blog going but hoping I can really chronical these last few weeks.
I finally got tired of rebuilding iTunes, and my Garmin logs and all my personal docs and took advantage of Circuit City going out of business to get a great deal on a new Lenovo laptop. I am huge fan of ThinkPads but I digress.
Today I got all the logs for my Garmin rebuild and totalled everything up. I am sitting 44 days out from Paris and have a total of 311.5 miles logged to date in this training program. I have an 18 miler slated for tomorrow so now we are getting to some SERIOUS long runs. Hopefully the weather will cooperate.

I did a 16 last weekend with SZ and TTD in a howling, driving rain storm that had all three of us questioning our own sanity. We decided when it was done that from this point on that run would simply be know as "That Time." As in, remember "that time" that it took three days for my shoes to dry out.. or "that time" drowned rats looked better than we did.. you get the picture.

Contrast that with a run while I was down in Walnut Creek. Running along the Contra Costa Canal Trail to the Ignacio Canal Trail and ended up with a steep climb on to the mountain at sunrise. It was clear, and brisk and much as I love Bidwell Park in Chico, the run that morning in Walnut Creek was really special.

All in all things are going well. The heels are a little sore and I have to keep on the stretching to ward off that PF thats nagging at my left foot again. :-( Going to try some Arnica Gel that I hear is great for the stiffness and aches we runners seem to get.
But, the mileage is up to about 35-40 miles a week and I am doing pretty well at holding a pace that should help me meet my target time. No injuries, staying clear of all the creepy crud all my fellow runners in Chico seem to be coming down with. I swear, its those "kettle bells" they are all going on and on about. Everyone I know doing them is getting sick.. maybe its the kooties being transfered off them!
Onward! Tight Laces and Flat Trails