Happy Happy Joy Joy

Today's run was fantastic. The double-secret group had an 18-miler, thus beginning our series of four long runs before the April taper. I haven't run with the group in two weeks, so I was excited to catch up with everyone and be back in the pack. :-)

I'm drained...physically and emotionally, but here are a few things that made this morning fun:

- The 6:29 am WAKE UP text from Cole (the 9-minute mile kids get these every Saturday)

- The half-eaten grilled cheese I found on my coffee table when I got up today...remnants of last night's Irish car bomb recovery plan (hey, who can turn down free shots??)

- Running with my buddy Tisha. We haven't run together in at least a month so this made me very happy.

- The sudden burst of speed I got when I hit Delta. I had been running at the back of the bus so to speak (only one guy was left behind me) and I pulled ahead and caught Coach Steve and the rest of the four-hour crew.

- Cherry Jolly Ranchers. They had these at the water stop before Gilbert/Eden Park and I discovered I really like the distraction of eating hard candy while wheezing up hills.

- The St. Paddy's day parade. We ran right through their staging area and everyone was staring at us like we were crazy. :0

- The camaraderie of my group in general. We cheer each other on, make fun of each other, and Coach Steve even stopped while I tied my shoe. After the run we all stood around the lobby of Crossroads (our start and end point) drinking free hot tea, stretching, and being goofy. Good times.

- The swag. I finally got to pick up my "perks" this morning and scored an awesome running shirt, a pair of my favorite running socks, and a gift card for a Road ID. Maybe I'll finally break down and order one of those things...

My least favorite part of the day was the obligatory ice bath, although the ski hat, flannel shirt, and watching the Office online made things much more tolerable. :-)

Pace was an 8:58 minute mile (average). I've slowed down a bit, but not freaking out about this. Yet. I am kind of concerned that there is so much time (10-20 minutes) between our double-secret add-on mileage and the base mileage with the rest of group A. Trying to figure out a plan to close the gap...may have to start doing the add-on at the end...