Eastern States 20

Big thanks to Mindy and Stephen for making this one very fun day! All of us had the goal not to "race" this race, but get in the miles and just have a really good time out there. Mission accomplished. Stephen's good friend Brian decided last minute not to run because of a foot injury, so Stephen ended up running with us instead. We had a blast.

The Eastern States 20 is pretty neat because it goes through three states. It starts in Kittery, Maine, runs along the coast of New Hampshire, and ends just after the Massachusetts border. I'm not gonna lie, I thought it would be pretty nifty to run the Eastern States and the Western States in the same year.

Nice to run into Mark before the race, who was there to support his wife who was running. His toddler son looks just like him.

Somewhat fortunately, the race started at 11am, allowing things to warm up a bit. I'm guessing it was in the mid-30s when we were off. First mile was wicked slow with the crowds, but we didn't really care. After that, things thinned out. Our slower pace throughout allowed the conversation to flow like wine, and flow it did. Stephen will be my pacer at the Western States 100, so we went over some tentative game plans for that. Mindy and Stephen both have triathalon experience, so it was fun to listen in on the goings on in that world. Politics also came into play. Normally a dangerous area, but Stephen and I are on the same page with many of our views.

As we ran, we noted how beautiful the course was and it was nice to be able to gaze out at the ocean while we ran. Reminded me of the MDI Marathon somewhat in that aspect.

Around 15 miles in, Stephen's nose started bleeding. At first, a little, but it kind of got worse. I asked Stephen repeatedly if he was fine and suggested that we slow down, but he wouldn't have any part of that. So, I just kept checking up on him to make sure he was fine, and he was. Eventually, he got it somewhat under control, and he appeared no worse for the wear.

Worried about his nose and knowing that we just wanted to finish the race at this point, we picked up the pace the last few miles, hitting the last mile split in under seven minutes. Felt good doing it, which was nice after a pretty high mileage week for me. Afterwards, went out for drinks and grub at a pub in Portsmouth. Good times!

Stats according to the Garmin, and obviously unofficial:
Ran 20.2 miles @ 8:17/mile pace
AHR/MHR - 139/167
Paved roads.
Mostly flat.
Mid 30s, rising to around 40. Sunny.
Shorts, short sleeved shirt, Moeben sleeves, beanie.



Weekly recap:
Mon - 14.4
Tue - 0
Wed - 16.0
Thu - 11.1
Fri - 0
Sat - 11.8
Sun - 20.0

Weekly total = 73.3

Monthly recap (doubt I'll run tomorrow because of the weather):
274.6 miles running.
19.6 miles elliptical.