Kent's wife Melinda drove us up to Trefoil then Larry, Kent and I ran home from there. It was a beautiful morning for a run. Just as we started I decided I'd better visit the nearby portapotty so Kent and Larry went on ahead. My goal today was to push the pace a little the 10 miles from Trefoil to the mouth of the canyon, so having to chase them at the beginning gave me a little extra motivation. I caught them between about 2 miles down South Fork. I was cruising at around a 7:00/mi pace so I decided to keep going. I ended up averaging 7:02/mi for the 4.3 miles from Trefoil to Vivian. It was by no means a PR, but the pace was about twice as fast as that same stretch at the end of the Squaw Peak 50 last month. It felt good to be able to generate a little speed again. After a quick drink of water I decided to continue on down towards the mouth of the canyon. I back off the pace just a little to try to avoid running 10 minute miles at the end like last week. I ran the first mile after Vivian at 8:11. I knew the following miles were a little faster so I set my goal at averaging 8:00/mi or faster the 5-ish miles down to the fountain at Timpanogos Park. I ended up averaging 07:54/mi. I decided to visit the restroom at the park. When I got back to the fountain Kent was just arriving. I told him I wanted to run 7:30 pace or faster the last 3/4 mile stretch to the mouth. I averaged 7:14/mi. Overall, I averaged about 7:30/mi for the 10 miles from Trefoil to the mouth. Again, it is not a PR, but for how slowly I've been running of late, I was feeling quite pleased. It didn't last. I told Kent I was going to jog back until I met Larry, but it didn't take me long to change my mind. My hip had tightened up and I couldn't generate any speed at all. My feet also felt tired and I felt the beginning of a blister on the ball of my left foot. We still had 3 miles to go to get home, so I slogged back to the mouth of the canyon to wait for Larry. I didn't have to wait long, but it was long enough. My hip was so stiff and sore that the last 3 miles home were very hard and very slow. I was struggling to keep up with Kent and Larry anyway, but then they started talking politics and pulled away. Even taking the diagonal shortcut past the high school I still finished well behind them. I was just glad to be finished. After averaging 7:30/mi for 10 miles, my splits for the last 3 miles were 11:32, 9:52, and 10:25. Part of its probably fitness, but I think a large part is my dang right hip (inflammation, arthritis?) and right heel (PF pain). When they decide they've had enough they seem to put the brakes on and I feel like I'm running through drying concrete. The hip has been hurting off and on for almost two years now, the PF pain in the heel off and on since January. Enough already. I'm seeking inspiration on how to proceed forward, but I'm optimistic that sooner or later this too shall pass.
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