What a great morning! Beautiful weather, no wind, and a fantastic run. I was nervous about doing my first 16k in 6 months. The group kept together for the first 5k at a nice, easy pace. But something unfortunate happened that has only happened to me once before...I needed to use the loo! Perhaps had I just been doing 12k I could have managed, but by the 4k mark it became clear I wasn’t going to make it through the next 12k without a pit stop. So I cleverly ran ahead when everyone else stopped for a group drink stop. I cut into what I thought was the ladies’ loo...
Until I saw the urinal. One stall, one urinal. But it was too late at that time. I figured, since it was only just on 6am there would be no one else around. Seems logical, right? Except I forgot about the other runners. I heard the group thundering past on the boardwalk soon after and then to my great dread, I heard the door opening. Ulp!
After a minute of silence, I cautiously opened up the stall door and peered out. To my great relief, no one was there. Safe! So I quickly washed my hands and bolted to the door...only to find my coach standing outside! Busted!!! Not the most embarrassing thing I’ve done – if you can believe it – but embarrassing enough. He had seen someone inside and decided to wait outside. I am just super grateful he decided to wait outside and not inside, or we might have had a Mexican stand-off in the men’s toilets. Eeesh!
I kept up a good pace and was feeling strong at the 8k turn-around. There was a group of 6 of us doing 16k and on the way back I reached a new dilemma. The guy I was running beside was running his heart out at a 6.50-7.10 pace. I had been cruising on a solid 6min pace, which is what the others were also doing. Did I join them and keep up my awesome pace while I was feeling so strong and fit, or fall back with the slower runner and encourage him along the way, foregoing an awesome training run in the vital lead-up to the Gold Coast?
The decision was simple: I have been that slow runner – I still am that slow runner. And what makes a running group a running group is that you do not leave a runner behind. I admit that the selfish part of me was disappointed, as I’d been having such a kick-ass run. But I waved off any protests from the other runner that I carry on ahead without him. That is simply not how things are done. Hasn’t there always – or often – been someone pulling along beside me, encouraging me and keeping me going just that little bit more as I struggled through a pace they found a breeze?
I did leave my friend, in the end. With about 500m to go he decided to walk the rest of the way and insisted I carried on. This time, I did. I ran to the end...and then kept going. I had, after all, taken the short cut with my fellow runner and only done 13.8km (not counting the walking breaks we took). I couldn’t call a 13.8k a 16k run no matter how I stretched the numbers, so I kept going until I had done a solid 16k. And you know what? I felt awesome. Here’s hoping the rest of my long runs are that much fun and energizing! I could have gone another 4k no problem.
Total distance: 16.22km
Total time: 1.45.39
Total elevation: mostly flat. Two bridges and a hill at the halfway mark
Avg pace: 6.30km/hr
1km: 6.30
2km: 6.17
3km: 6.22
4km: 6.18
5km: 6.20
6km: 5.58
7km: 5.40
8km: 6.46
9km: 6.48
10km: 6.50
11km: 7.02
12km: 6.35
13km: 6.48
14km: 6.17
15km: 6.51
16km: 6.47
ps – I walked to the shops later on this morning, planning to cycle to a barbeque for lunch about 6k away. As I walked back from said shops, my feet started to drag, my legs started to ache, and I realized I couldn’t possibly cycle 12k today when I have already a planned 10k cycle tomorrow.
And on a final after thought, isn’t it sad that I can run further than I can cycle? That I’d much rather do a 16k run than a 16k ride, because I think it will be easier? Food for thought. Time for a second post-run snack. Running certainly makes me hungry!
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