Refrosting

And just like that, it's race season!

Sorta.

See? "Race" does not appear in the description.

Having taken a week off running in November to try to sort out a hamstring issue (don't ask - I do stupid things when I drink), then most of another week in mid-December while my new ink healed, there was no way I was signing up for anything more than my usual 3 hours. I actually had to do rather a hasty build in the last couple of weeks to see if even that was a good idea, as I hadn't run more than an hour since Horror Hill all the way back in October. The last two Saturdays have been "long" runs of 14k and 18k, with last week creeping back up close to 50k total - right around where I'm comfortable to take on most events. The leg has hung in there, despite some truly horrific conditions, so I registered for the 3-hour on Monday with the Tanker-enforced caveat that I pull the plug the moment anything starts to hurt.

ill advised racing condition 1 achieved: under-preparedness.

Yeah, I'm trying to take Around the Bay relatively seriously this year. I have a goal of going under 3 hours, which may or may not happen, but damnit I'm trying to do the work. That being the case, this is rather prime training time...so instead of tapering, I actually have ramped up the mid-week mileage a little these past few days. To top it all off, I've been back in the pool (for the first time in almost a month - fresh ink plus 2 new piercings needed to heal) since Saturday, so I've added even more to the fatigue I'm carrying and have been getting even less sleep.

ill advised racing condition 2 achieved: no rest for the wicked.

Then there's the matter of the weather and trail conditions.

"There are some slippery sections" - as in, from the start line to the finish line.

The ice storm was all the way back on December 22nd, but we've had precious little in the way of weather to improve things in the woods. This week alone has been an absolute nightmare of freeze and thaw, producing impassable sidewalks slick with glossy, treacherous ice. I haven't had the daylight or the courage to hit a trail recently, so I simply don't have a clue of what it will really be like. It started snowing last night, too, so whatever is out there may very well be invisible. At least we're supposed to have some sun during the race itself!

ill advised racing condition 3 achieved: high probability of hurting myself.

From last night's run.

Then just when you thought things couldn't get any more perfect, I actually managed to break a toe last night. In the hot tub. While stretching.

I'm not kidding.

ill advised racing condition 4 achieved: minor annoying injury incurred proximal to race.

Sounds like I've got all the bases covered - let's go racing!