20 again

What a day to leave the park and run down the west side. The winds off the water were high enough that I had to lean to avoid getting pushed over.  For a stretch heading down, the wind was square at my back and my pace increased about 30 seconds per mile. I couldn't hear anything other than the wind, and as I started to sweat, each gust sent chills up and down my arms and legs. I had my credit card with me and was on the lookout for any establishment that might possibly have a windbreaker, vest or long sleeve tshirt in stock. I briefly considered looking for the Intrepid gift shop.

The southernmost point of Manhattan feels entirely devoid of Americans. German, Russian and Japanese tourists clogged the path as they waited for their ferries to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.  Annoyed and chilled through, I turned around at the 8 point something mile mark instead of continuing a bit up the east side to hit the half way mileage mark.

At the ten mile mark, I broke out the ipod and turned the volume to the highest level so that I could hear something above the wind. I stopped a couple times at the west side path bathrooms for tissues, which helped the breathing quite a bit. I cannot say enough about how impressively clean those public bathrooms are; I really want to thank someone for that. 

It was such a relief to hit 72nd street again and leave the waterfront. The wind dropped to a windy but normal level and I warmed up a bit on the sunny sides of the streets. To get in the full mileage, I ran all the way up and around the top of the park, which meant the last several miles of the run were made up of Harlem Hill. Not easy. I was seriously tired by mile 18.

The run was hard, but that just reinforced to me that I needed to do it. No pain, no gain, they say. Here's to believing the inverse is true. I spent the rest of the day yesterday exhausted, in bed, moaning about my ouchy legs. Breakdown of muscle fibers or something. Now they can spend the next few weeks repairing themselves to emerge stronger.

Still no injuries. Just a bit of clothes rubbing that has left me with a couple red stripes, but it hasn't hurt while running; there's only a little sting in the hot shower.

Now, I am off for a massage to celebrate the end of the very long runs.

Next week is a 14, the following week is an 8, and then the marathon!