The sky is falling

So, Cincinnati is being hit with 60 mph winds tonight. My boss urged me not to do my training run because I might get hit by a falling tree. Guess what? I almost got hit by a falling tree. What are the odds???

Despite my run-in with nature, I had a great night! Our group met at Crossroads and did the Madison/Erie/Rosslyn/Brotherton loop - some decent hills, although we had a nice tailwind at our backs for most of it. I took off way too fast and kept waiting for my legs to die so I would have an excuse to back off the pace. But then before I knew it, we finished the 6.8 miles and I had forgotten that I wanted to slow down. Average pace? 8:19.

I can't figure this out. Why am I faster now? Is it because I've tweaked my training plan this season? In the Fall I was doing 3-4 runs per week: 2 with the group (1 speed run and 1 long run) and 1-2 on my own, which usually involved hills mixed with a masochistic effort to beat my old training run times.

This season I'm doing four runs per week: 2 with the group (same as Fall) and 2 on my own (1 five-mile run at a 10 minute pace and 1 MP run on the treadmill or other flat surface). Are the flat, slow runs helping?? Perhaps my sudden burst of energy is coming from the REALLY BAD HIP HOP MUSIC I've been getting stuck in my head during training runs. Tonight's internal jukebox? Cyclone by Baby Bash (I had to look that one up). Ha ha.

Whatever the cause, this newfound speed makes me hungry for red meat. A bunch of us went to Habit's after the run tonight in hopes of getting burgers, only to have the power go out during the first round of drinks (silly hurricane-force winds). Thankfully Arthur's had power so we were able to satisfy our carnivorous cravings there. :-)