My husband and most of my friends have been planning to run Derry this year. Derry, as it is referred to by most of us, is actually called Boston Prep. It’s a moderately challenging course with 16 major hills. 16 major hills over 16 miles…in late January. By the time Derry came about (today), every one of them decided against running. Unfortunately, there was ample injury and illness that triumphed over the solid training needed for this no-nonsense kind of race. With Scott and our friends no longer running the race, Scott and I ventured out for our own Derry.
Lisa’s own Derry Boston Prep –
The official Derry Boston Prep –
I’m not sure why the elevation charts aren’t populating fully, but you get the idea.
Today’s run was really hard. Not just because the course had some decent hill-age, and not just because it was only 11 degrees when we headed out and I had multiple layers on. It was hard because I felt tired and not mentally equipped to do this dance. Enter Scott. He seemed to know just what I needed and selected this course because he knew I needed a confidence boost.
We didn’t cover 16 miles, but we came close, finishing at 14.5 miles in 2:06. I wasn’t sure I had this distance in me after my surgery (which is why I didn’t sign up for the official Derry), so successfully completing today’s challenging 14.5 was a huge feather in my cap. And Scott, who is still monitoring a funky foot issue, is benefiting from running a slower pace with me. It was a win/win!
I’ve got a nothing-kind-of-day lined up that includes a nap, leisure blog reading/posting, mindless Facebook stalking, and soon, some good ole cheering for our New England Patriots! Aah, life is good.
Hills make us stronger ... hills make us faster ... but I still hate hills!
ReplyDeleteInterestingly, I really don't hate hills. Today, I just let it all get in my head for a little while. Fortunately, I found my mojo (albeit late) enough to feel really good about it by the end.
DeleteGreat job! What a run! I know it sucks while you're doing it, but seeing that elevation chart makes me miss doing bad-ass long runs. :^)
ReplyDeleteThanks Terzah! As fragile as I felt early in the run, one large hill brought it all back for me. I LOVED the way I felt when I reached the top and kept going. I did kinda feel bad-ass :)
DeleteI REALLY need some challenging hills to train on. I train on mild to moderate hills all of the time, but I need larger prep hills for the Blue Ridge Marathon in April (just found out I won an entry - so excited)
ReplyDeletesounds like you are making a great "come-back"
Very cool winning an entry to Blue Ridge! So here we both go, training for the big Spring marathon..... :) Good luck finding those hills (you can borrow mine anytime!)
DeleteCongrats on a running a very hilly course!! I am very impressed.
ReplyDeleteI don't know how I missed this post in my dashboard! Congrats on successfully running a very hilly course!!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks!! Mandy, whenever I do bigger/more hills, I think of your MOUNTAIN training :)
ReplyDeleteThat's fast and on a hilly route, too! Great Boston training! If I did that many hills here in Houston, it would probably mean I was running over a bridge and back again 30 times or on the treadmill.
ReplyDeleteThat's one thing we do not lack here - hills. Lots and lots of hills. I don't really mind them and will be seeing some of the familiar hills tomorrow....weeeeee!
DeleteSidenote: a friend of mine stays at the beach each summer (very flat) and by the time she returns home, her legs are screaming at her for having done no hillwork.
Tina, I gotta tell you how impressed I am that you seem to be able to finish one big race and get right back into another. Hero!
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