What Does 16 Miles Look Like???

PRAISE THE LORD!!! I gotta start out like that because this morning I was VERY grumpy. It was dark-thirty and I knew the temperature was 79 degrees with 79% humidity. I actually said, "Lord... why can't we get a break for once? This weather is killing us!" Little did I know that we'd be running the entire 16 miles under a strong/cool breeze and cloudy skies. My gosh it was an amazing blessing! And it helped out in ways you have no idea...

A lot of people ask me each week, "So... how far did you run?" When you spout out numbers like 10, 11, 12, etc... sometimes people just go, "Oh my gosh! That sounds terrible!"

Well, I've inserted a picture on the left to give you an idea of what it looks like to run what Becky and I did this morning. Yep, we ran 16 miles.

If you started running from the Plaza of the Americas in downtown Dallas, then headed up the Dallas North Tollway, you'd reach the George Bush Turnpike (190).

And, to make matters sound even more painful, it would take you over 3 hours of running. And you'd be kinda tired... (I say that right now as I'm watching Forrest Gump.... "I'm pretty tired... think I'll go home now.")

So we met at 5:30 AM at the Big Thicket. I was really nervous. Not many people know this, but I have a lot of problems in the early mornings before long runs. Specifically, I gag a lot... and when there's a lot of gagging, there's a lot of "stuff" that eventually comes up. I'm used to it, and it usually happens at my house. Unfortunately this morning, that didn't happen. It decided to wait until I was in the parking lot with Chandra and Becky. Uuugh....

Anyhoo, after that, I was fine. We took off running and chatted for a bit... and made it to 3 miles. Got a drink, and took off again. Chandra was suffering from a headache that had been going on since Thursday, and her new shoes weren't feeling the greatest. At 6 she told us to run without her.

I went through a variety of difficulties through this run. Of course, the first 3 miles my calves are always tight. Then from 6 to 9 I have soreness in my thighs. We made it to the truck at 9, and I did a few things: Took goo, drank gatorade, and put on a dry headband and wristband. Then, off we went.

Around 11 we had a strange sighting - Rob on a bike! Rob is my boss and friend, and he's preparing for a long bike ride in September. He came up behind us and chatted while we were running. He even saw how drenched I was: "Your feet are squishing!!!" After we stopped off at a water fountain, we took off again and Rob went the other direction. That was a refreshing moment - it just broke up the whole monotony of the run.

At 12.5 we were at another water fountain near the dam, and we ran into Jay - a coworker of ours. He was out running early as well, and it was another great little diversion. We took off from there and kept our spirits up until the next water fountain. Oh, we ran into Rob again. He was shooting to finish 50 miles on the bike.

Around 14 my left knee reared up. It had finally joined my right knee, which had been hurting for a few miles. It's hard to explain the pain, but I kept thinking I had 2 nails on each side of my knees. Uugh...

Well, we did it... 3 hours 13 minutes. As we were finishing up 16, Rob came back and saw us to the end. He came to the parking lot and witnessed me peeling off the soaked shirt and socks... followed shortly by the "wringing out" of the soaked shirt. He even took a gander at the feet and looked on wincingly... ha!

Anyway, it was over. I got home and showered, ate, and napped. And I've been hobbling around... I can't wait until all of this is over! Believe YOU me!!!!