Love Triangle ends in near disaster!

It’s not what you think. Friday night I had a long overdue date night with my wife. We went out for crabs and if you know anything about eating crabs in Maryland you have to have beer to wash them down. I knew most likely, I would not feel like running 15 miles Saturday morning. That is the set up, here is what happened next.

I thought I would just run on Sunday morning instead of my typical Saturday morning run but then, I had to return a pair of shorts to Charm City Running. While I was there I decided to get a new pair of running shoes. The Nike LunarTrainers are good for tempo runs and track workouts but I don’t know how much I trust them on the long runs. I decided to get a more traditional shoe for the long runs. I tried on the Asics Nimbus 11, Nike Vomero 4, and the Brooks Defyance 2. I was surprised that I ended up with the Brooks. The difference between the Nike $135 vs Brooks $80 was slim. As a matter of fact the only difference I could feel was the Nike had slightly more cushion in the front of the shoe. So now I have the 1st part of the love triangle, a new pair of running shoes.  I love new running shoes!  I might even admit to having a problem.

Brooks Defyance 2

It is late in the afternoon Saturday, I went with my wife to walk the dog (Vincent) and take Theo for a stroll through our neighborhood while she picked up some wine at our local shop. I started thinking, if I run now instead of tomorrow morning, I could drink some wine and chill out tonight. BRILLIANT! Who cares that it is 90º F and close to 100% humidity. In case your keeping score, the second love is wine.

With a new pair of running shoes begging to get out of the box and fulfill their destiny, I figure I will down some Hammer Enduralytes and bring my water with money to re-up on the water. Running is the third love in the triangle. The first 3 miles were pretty hot but I was doing well. I ran past all the Boston Red Socks fans heading to Oriole Park, and made my way to the Statue of Johnny Unitas outside of the Raven’s Stadium. I tapped Johnny U’s foot for luck and kept moving. Wow, it was getting hot. I trudge on, not my best pace but I figure not to shabby considering the heat.

I was through my first bottle of water 4 miles into the run. The loop around Fort McHenry has a water fountain so I fill up there. Next stop would be at the 8 mile mark and I am parched. I stopped in a coffee shop and poured ice water from a pitcher into my bottle. Man! The ice water tasted AWESOME! I gulped it greedily. At the 11 Mile mark I stopped at a CVS to get another bottle of water. I thought checking out in the “self checkout” lane would be faster and I could avoid the embarrassment of handing over sweat soaked dollar bills. It took me an extra 5 minutes trying to get the bill feeder to take my money. My legs are stiff when I leave the store but now, I am on my way home. It is all uphill on the way back and I am spent. As I get to 14 miles I hit the wall, I HAVE to walk. I have accepted that I am beat on this run. After a couple minutes I start running again. My Garmin is telling me I am close to the 15 mile mark and at 14.75 I was finished running and now walking the last .25 and feeling very light headed. I get inside and down cold water and some Recoverite. A hop in the shower to rinse off and I will be free to enjoy some wine.

Here is the funny thing. I felt so out of it that I was able to only have one glass of wine and I didn’t even enjoy it. I was all googly inside. So, I got my long run in, and learned a lesson. I will avoid the heat at all cost.