~8 miles @ ~10 min/mi + 4 miles @ ~11.5 min/mi

CM Manlandro meets me in the elementary school parking lot a little after 6am. Sue & Connie's Run, an MCRRC 4 miler, starts here at 8am, so we have plenty of time to get some training on this humid morning. We follow the race course to Rock Creek Trail and trot a few miles upstream at ~10.5 min/mi pace, take a short break to admire Lake Needwood, then return and proceed further on RCT to turn around when CM's GPS suggests that we'll achieve the 8 mile total she seeks. Our pace now is ~9.8 min/mi, and we dare each other into doing the final mile on S&C's Run route at 8:56. Christina Caravoulias snaps our photo as we approach the start/finish area and Lyman Jordan announces to all that we've been warming up. After a half-hour break the race itself begins. Chris and I get splits of 10:23 + 11:13 + 12:05 + 12:23. Ken Swab and I are by coincidence both wearing "Run for Roses" technical shirts. We pose for pictures together.

^z - 2009-05-30