Average pace: 4:55/km
Location: Burnaby Lake, CW
Distance: 11.29 km
Weather: Sunny, hot and humid
Temp: 28-29ºC
Wind: moderate
Calories burned: 801
Total distance to date: 1580 km
Early yesterday the forecast for today was looking like partly cloudy, cooler and a chance of showers. Instead it was sunny, hot and humid, just like Friday! In fact it seemed even hotter than Friday and once again only a merciful wind tempered the run.
I opted to run clockwise to get the detour out of the way and despite having to fiddle with the cord of my iPod at least four times to keep it from flopping out of my pocket I turned in a stellar first km, coming in at 4:29, only one second off my best-ever pace.
I came back to reality shortly after that. The low point came between the 8-9K mark, about where it normally hits me. I had a good finish, though, which always pleases me. This was the first run where getting a drink at the faucet near the dam had to be done a bit cautiously. I was very warm and the water was very cold so I only took a few small sips to acclimate a little, then drank like the proverbial man in the desert.
This was a run in which my senses were hit in different ways. There was the smell of fresh cut grass, which was pleasant. The giant tractor hogging the entire width of the trail that forced me to carefully make my way along the dubiously spongy grass along the edge was less nice. Then there were several times where I could taste the tangy scent of manure in the air. Hot weather and manure on the wind is not an ideal combination but fortunately the aroma passed quickly.
My favorite part of the run came at the fields. For some reason some of the sprinklers were running and two of them were hitting the path so I got two brief but refreshing splashes of water along one of the most-exposed parts of the trail. I was tempted to divert and traipse through all of them.
I skipped all three trails again but comfortably finished above 11K, as per usual since the detour went into effect. It’s been nearly a month now and I’m curious how close they are to on-schedule. I’ll find out in about four weeks.
Also, I achieved a new milestone today. My best year for runs was 2010 when I completed 513 km. Today I surpassed that by coming in with 516 km and I have five and a half months to improve on that. Joan was so excited she congratulated me on another 500 km. Thanks, Joan!
Chart
| Date | Average Pace |
| July 16 | 4:55 |
| July 13 | 4:59 |
| July 11 | 4:55 |
| July 9 | 4:54 |
| July 6 | 4:58 |
| July 4 | 4:54 |
| July 2 | 4:47 |
