Run #115

How much: 19

How long: 4:19:53 (pace 13:41)

Where: lakefront 

When: 6pm yesterday/started out at 78 degrees and humid, ended at 60, windy and misting. And dark.

September miles: 24

Total 2014 miles: 476.4

More to come soon...

Alright, so here we go: I left somewhere around 6pm to run. It was a bit humid, it'd been raining much of the day and I was on my way. As I have for other long runs this season, I opted for a run walk approach. Running, then walking about .10 of a mile or so at the top of every mile. So that's what I did. Only at about Mile 3 I went a little longer, about .2 and decided it felt better. I was feeling very tight in my chest/lungs (maybe due to the humidity?) Anyway, I would walk somewhere between .10 and .20. However, I was running faster than a 12:00 pace (my GOAL long run pace)because even when I would walk that full .20, my miles were clocking in the 12:40s. I was feeling pretty great!

At about 8 miles in (at the concrete monster, my name for that concrete mess between Oak Street and Ohio Street Beaches), it started to rain. Grumble. Keep going. My turnaround for 19 miles was 9.5 (duh) and I really, REALLY didn't feel like continuing on the path under Lakeshore Drive, because it's dark even on the brightest sunny day, and lots of little unnecessary hills. (well, it's a bridge, so of course there's a ramp up and ramp down part. Anyway.) Instead I decided to see what would happen running down the pier between Navy Pier (Chicago's biggest tourist trap) and the City Water Plant. Seriously, if you are a tourist and want to spend way too much for parking to shop or dine at way overpriced places, Navy Pier is your place. I ran by several ships (or maybe just "big ass boats") and suddenly was greeted by a blocked path. I was at about 9.2. Oh well. I turned around and went back to the front of Navy Pier and ran around the circle drive, hoping to make up mileage, and then headed back north. It was really dark at this point and difficult to see the pothole-y path. I was so close to the water and wondered if I fell in, would anyone even know. One wrong move--a misstep on a pothole or a bike catapulting me into the water... I took this picture while I was running:

 

At this point, runners and cyclists were few and far between. As I got back close to North Avenue Beach it stopped raining. I turned and looked over my shoulder. Aaaah, Chicago.

 

I made my way back up north, having difficulty seeing the path despite their being lights. I began to take longer walking breaks. Every once in awhile I would text BB and let him know where I was in miles. In the dark, I noticed lots of little itty bunnies running across the path, along the sides. It was weird. Cute, but weird. I guess they don't come out as much when lots of people are still out there.

At around Mile 16 I felt like 3 more miles was unmanageable. I walked a lot in that mile, I think. At 17 I said "You can do 2 more miles Lindy." At 18 I said "You got this, Lindy!" And that turnaround that was a bit short? I decided to add on a little bit right after exiting the lakefront path and before I got all the way home. There's nothing worse on a long run than getting back to your destination and realizing you can't quite stop yet. Back on the streets I noticed two more little baby rabbits. ? It must be rabbit season, only I guess I just thought that was a spring thing.

And that was that. I would have preferred a stronger finish, but I'm ok with this. It was a better long run than I've had in a good long while.