It felt awesome.
Minor detour: After I started running last summer, my dad told me I'd inspired him to start being active -- one of the best compliments ever. He started walking outside, building up to three, four, five miles. Then winter (or what people in Tennessee call winter, which I can say authoritatively after four years in Vermont and 10 in New York, is not winter) arrived.
And Dad went mall walking. Every weekend he goes out and does up to three or four miles of laps around the Gap and Dillard's and Hot Topic and Cinnabon (an exercise regime killer if ever there were one). And I'm really proud of him.
When I got an email from my TNT BK coaches saying we were going to be doing our long run this weekend in Prospect Park, I thought immediately of mall walking. Doing circles around Prospect Park and its 3.35-mile loop is an awful lot like circling the mall. Or like Chevy Chase driving his kids on the roundabout past Parliament and Big Ben in "National Lampoon's European Vacation." Take your pick.
The point is, it's repetitive. I ran with a few friends and we talked about a lot of nothing to pass the time. We did two five-mile loops of the park, followed by a three-mile loop. When we passed our coaches at the 13-mile mark, they did the wave. Did I mention it was 21 degrees outside? And the coaches weren't running, they were standing around in the cold to offer us encouragement as we ran by? Brrr. And thanks, guys.
Post-wave, I faced down the 14th mile. And I did it! I ran farther than I ever thought possible. (Are my PE teachers from elementary and high school reading this? I hope so.) And I'm still moving.
I think my new shoes helped. Aren't they nice?
Brooks Adrenaline GTS 8, baby. These got me through the Nike Women's Half Marathon in San Francisco last year. I love them. And I'm digging the yellow -- a major improvement over the pink on my last pair.
After a long, beautiful stretching session, my friend and 14-mile run buddy Amy thoughtfully provided all of us TNT BK'ers with coffee and bagels at her apartment, which made for a lovely coda for my morning of accomplishment. I'm looking forward to the miles beyond.
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