It's Countdown Time!

Met with Cathy and Kevin at 6:30 for our final "long" run before Boston. The plan was to do 12 with all of the normal hills. There's something very intimidating about the heartbreak series of hills in Boston. We could have easily skipped the hills today but the thought of red-lining with 6 miles to go was enough to keep us from getting complacent. I think the most substantial gain I've made during this training season is the ability to quickly recover after speeding up a hill. This will be crucial in Boston especially in the miles leading up to Heartbreak Hill. Having run Boston last year, I have identified several places on the course that I will perform mini-celebrations! The top of Heartbreak Hill may just top the list. Last year there was a big blow-up football jersey (or something) located at the crest of the famous hill that said 5.5 to go! Second to Heartbreak is the final two turns of the course. The first onto Hereford St. and the second onto Boylston St. where the finish line is finally visible! If you know ahead of time what you're running into, you can get such an adrenaline rush at this point of the course. It's exactly what's needed to get through the final 1/4-mile!

Anyway, The run was great and we all went out for breakfast at Panera's afterwords. I couldn't choose between a strawberry & cream pastry or a banana-nut "muffie"... so I got both, plus a huge carmel latte! I should have taken a picture of the latte! It was heaven in a cup!