~18.5 miles @ ~12.7 min/mi

"Have I explained the Sea Breeze phenomenon yet?" I ask Kate Abbott, as the wind picks up when we run along the Potomac near National Airport. "Yes! Many times!" is Kate's instant answer. I've just finished lectures on Scoring Rules for probabilistic predictions, and Contract Bridge bidding systems.

Today's run reverses the loop we did a fortnight ago: from East Falls Church Metro down the W&OD, Custis, Mount Vernon, and Four Mile Run trails. Heat & humidity wear us down, but a pause at the Shirlington "Weenie Beanie" for jumbo sodas makes the final miles tolerable. Best passing-bike warning comes from a babbling baby in the jumpseat. Rabbits and a chipmunk scamper close to us. A cyclist heading the opposite way says, "Hi Mark!" but Kate and I don't recognize her. A few days later, when by chance I send an electronic "GM!" to a colleague, she replies, "You were out early Saturday!" — and it turns out that Beth S. was the one on the bike, near the beginning of her own 30 mile excursion. Small world!

Jupiter glitters by the crescent moon as we set off ~6am. The morning sun is shining like a red rubber ball — and guess what song gets stuck in my head for miles 2-12? We pause at a park on the Potomac to take photos of the scaffolding-clad Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial across the water, and one of mine, with Kate in silhouette, turns out quite nicely after a little post-processing to crop, straighten, and adjust contrast and saturation.

Garmin GPS and Runkeeper concur on distance and splits.

^z - 2013-09-16