20...Count 'Em!

That's right, tomorrow's the big one...20 miles on Chicago's finest Lakefront Path.


Can you feel the anxiousness in the air? And all of it is emanating from me. Even though I've been through this before, I can't say that I'm entirely comfortable with what's gonna go down tomorrow. I'm worried about sooooooooo many things! And yes, most of those things are beyond my control, but you know what? That doesn't stop me from worrying about them. I am a professional worrier, and have been from a very young age. My mother is fond of telling the story of how, when I was in 3rd grade, I start having legit panic attacks about long division.

...we hadn't even made it through the multiplication tables yet. I was worried about something that hadn't happened. So yes, this is not a new occurrence for me at all.

I've also been mulling over the idea of starting my run early tomorrow, because my main concern (ever since the 16 miler from Hell) is the weather. I've been checking it every day since last Sunday and it has slowly risen. True, the reports are saying that it won't hit 80 until well after noon, but come on! This is the Midwest and there's NO WAY these things can be accurately predicted.

So the plan that I may or may not be attempting tomorrow is to run anywhere from 5 to 10 miles tomorrow on my own, starting at 5 AM, and then hooking up with my pace group at 6:15 AM when we officially start and running about five to ten miles with them. I think this is a good plan! I mean, even if I only run five miles on my own, all I'd have to run with the group is seven miles before turning around and heading back to Montrose. What do you guys think?

The 20 miler must go well. I know what will happen if it doesn't...I'll be an even bigger mess going into the marathon.

*Sigh* Or I can try and tough it out with my homies at 6:15 AM.

Well...say prayers for me. Or whatever it is you do...


If you can't stand the heat...run in Alaska