Both the highs and lows are good ...

Mile 11
Courtesy No Antics @ Flickr

How long a run feels is pretty much a relative thing. Some days a simple 4-miler can feel like a never-ending slog session. Other days in mid-run you feel like you could run forever. Of course, that particular feeling is fleeting. Our bodies will eventually bring such flights of fantasy back down to earth soon enough. Still, there's an exhilaration that comes with experiencing each sensation, pleasant or not, both the endorphin-laden euphoria and the lactic-acid-induced suffering. Each stretch running effort brings with it new surprises, new experiences; some worth reliving, others we don't care to remember. So it is was yesterday's long run.


The timelapserunner already had a route picked out for yesterday's 11-miler some weeks ago. Upon closer inspection and with the date bearing down on us, we scrapped plans to run up on the levee from LSU to the I-10 bridge over the Mississippi River. Not sure why, but it just didn't appeal. Instead, we recomputed another route, making use of two loops: a long Lakes loop and another around the University Lake itself with a pass through campus to checkout the tailgating for this weekend's game.

Loop 1 - 5.53 miles

Loop 2 - 5.58 miles

In planning, we estimated the ambient temperature would be roughly 68˚F at the start and about 75˚F at our expected finish, suggesting a 14:20 overall pace with intervals of 0:30 / 0:35 and running pace of 12:47. This would predict an elapsed run time of roughly 2 hours and 38 minutes.

With that cooler starting temperature, the beginning of the run felt very good; but with our rather slow planned pace we were mostly getting passed up by the many runners taking advantage of an early start. A few little ripples of soreness fluttered around my legs, mostly on the left side - nothing unusual. About 25 minutes into the run we glanced back over towards campus only to see the lights on in Tiger Stadium, a rather strange site. I guess they turn 'em on a lot earlier than I thought. We passed up the little cove where all the egrets were again resting in a half-dozen trees, awaiting the sunrise.

The strangest feeling of that morning's run came as we made the turn that placed us near where we had parked the car. Only this time, we would not be ending our run just yet. We has ANOTHER 5.5 mile loop to put in to make the 11-mile long run commitment for this weekend! Of course, we knew that. However, the psychological topsy-turvy head battle that ensued as we continued past our starting point was at once both depressing and exciting. Depressing for just a moment as the body and mind realized that the run was not over - rest was not yet awaiting. Exciting, because our conscious mind was overcoming that wave of damp thought to continue on our way. The first time I experienced something just like this. Ain't life grand!

We ran a bit faster than planned - it's so hard to go that slow - and finished in 2:25:28, for an average pace of 13:14 per mile. Legs were a bit sore later that evening heading to and from the game, but the timelapserunner's mind was fresh with the thoughts and feelings of a new experience and a new accomplishment: our longest road outing in a quarter century!