You Can't Always Get What You Want

Glass half empty I only managed a 4 day/54.5mpw,glass half full I upped my long run to 15.5 miles as the magic  numbers are now 1/10 for the Rock & Roll Half Marathon/Philly Marathon

Monday 15.5 miles
Taking full advantage of Labour Day I got out and ran since Mondays tend to be a "no go zone" due to work.
Since Monday was a holiday I slept till 9am and didn't hit the sidewalks that lead me to the Art Museum loop till 10.30am  which is later than the 6.30am runs I've been doing on the weekends and thus warmer,the sweat stains on my sleeveless running shirt bore that out.
Having done the "out and back" 7.5/7.5=15 miles a few times I was curious to see what the whole loop would come out to,I knew it'd be just over 15 miles so thanks to a tweak here and there I was able to round up to 15.5 miles in 2.08.53 off of 8.19 mile pace

Tuesday Rest Day,given I didn't know what to expect at work w/ Tuesday becoming my Monday I hedged my bets that I'd be balls arsed busy....I wasn't as busy as I thought but frankly my upper thighs were a tad sore from Mondays run so perhaps Rest Day was the way to go

Wednesday Rained out....bugger!
I'm no stranger to running in the rain....I grew up in London for fecks sake however w/ Philly R&R1/2 now eleven days away maybe playing "fast and loose" w/ the conditions was not the way to go and when the heavens opened around 6pm I would've been a few miles from home and shelter and frankly I've worked too damn hard since Aug 1st for next Sunday so while I lost a day I may've saved myself a few between now and Sept 17th

Thursday 14 miles
The most noticeable thing for me on this run was how much cooler conditions were compared to previous runs out and back along either Kelly Dr or West River Dr after work during August,to underline that fact on Aug 16th I ran a 13 miler in 1.48.03 off 8.37 mile pace,tonite I clocked 1.48.24 off 7.44 mile pace.....over 14 miles,yes things have cooled off but I've also gotten more speed,strength and stamina under me,this should bode well moving forward.

Saturday 14 miles
A delightfully crisp 55 degrees greeted me at 6.30am as I headed out for this run,switched from sleeveless to short sleeves but also w/ next Sundays gun time at 7.30am I probably need to be up 6am so it was good to get a "lay of the land" in that respect.
When I reached the turnaround in 53.06 I was twenty seven seconds up on Thursday time,neither here nor there in some respects but always nice to feel you're getting faster.....
1.47.01 off of 7.38 mile pace and almost by default a seasons best,not sure how many more 14 milers are on tap but if there are more 1.47.01 is the time to try and beat

Sunday 11 miles
Not quite what I had hoped for to be honest,the aim was 16.5 miles to round out at 60mpw.
While I'm happy to go"out and back" on either drive the prospect of say running 8.5 miles on a 7.5 loop and then circling back in the direction I just came is....frankly a bit fuckin' boring so unless say I don't know the Swedish Bikini Team are cheer leading the route.....I can dream.....I'm looking at going "off book"
W/ hindsight maybe doing the hills of the Belmont Plateau was my undoing this morning,maybe dancing my arse off at The Trocadero last nite to UB40 didn't help either but either way when I worked my way back down to West River Dr via Sweet Briar Lane,Landsdown Ave,Avenue Of The Republic and Belmont Ave my legs said no mas and I had to settle for 11 miles in 1.31.22 off 8.14 mile pace.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing and the next time I look to extend my run I'll nix the Belmont Plateau and stay on Montgomery Dr to loop back down to West River Dr,this however won't be for a few weeks,next weekend is the Philly R&R 1/2 and the following weekend I'll be google mapping a potential 17 miler out in San Diego.....something along the coastline would be nice.......Swedish Bikini Team optional.....but very welcome....just saying!