06.11.2009 - 10 Miles (Running to Father's Office)

Since I was unlikely to get a long run in this weekend, I opted to run 10 miles tonight. To reward myself for my effort, a pot of gold in the form of burger and fries was in store for me at the finish. I mapped out a 10 mile route that started from my front door and ended at Father's Office in Culver City. I took Wilshire to La Brea to Beverly to La Cienega to Third to Fairfax to Venice. It turned out to be an easy route since more than half of it was downhill. I didn't set my chrono, but by my estimate I ran it in about an hour and a half.

Father's Office was crowded but there was no line to get in. The Laker game was on, so it was quite loud, but the game soon ended and things calmed down. Kevin met me at the restaurant. We're both Father's Office virgins, so we didn't realize that the table situation there is every-person-for-him-and-herself. The place was packed, but there were some tables that could accommodate more people, so we just had to step out of our comfort zone and deign to share a table with strangers.

The burger was pretty good. It's a sweet-tasting, juicy burger. The meat flavor isn't quite there. When I eat a burger I want to taste meat, but this one had a more subtle flavor. I liked the bun they used, which looked more like a roll. Even better were the sweet potato fries. All in all quite rewarding after a good run.

06.07.2009 - 21 Miles

What a difference a week makes. Last week's 18 miler was tough, but in comparison this weekend's 20 miler felt almost easy. I encountered no problems except for an annoying coughing jag in the early miles. By the time I got up to Devil's Gate Dam, though, it felt like I was just starting. I decided to run past Elmer for 10 minutes, which probably meant I went farther than a mile. Weather was great, too. I couldn't have asked for a better run. At the finish I felt like I could go a couple miles longer, but I didn't.

So far this week I've run twice, a 5.75 mile, door-to-door run, and a 5.5 mile run to the GLU meeting last night. Both weren't great runs. Last night was particularly troublesome with my coughing and the sidewalks really do a number on my shins. My legs are more sore now than they were after running 20.

05.30.2009: 18.2 Miles

I met up with Rob to run 18 miles since we're both running Seattle. I had a bout of the cold a couple of days before, so I was worried about congestion and having not run all week. Still I forged ahead and the running actually seemed to improve my breathing. I still had a few coughing jags but nothing too bad.

The run, though, turned out to be a slog. Both Rob and I struggled. I started cramping with about two miles left but we still managed to finish in three hours. I can't blame the weather since it was perfect--overcast and cool. My lack of running and the illness probably didn't help, but I also didn't think they were major factors. It was just one of those days. I'm hoping the 20 miler will be better. The weather will be just like last weekend. I'm still trying to work out the phlegm and such that seems to take forever to clear but it shouldn't be a problem on Saturday.