A run through the park...

After Grand Coulee, I felt I needed to focus on the area of my race that needed the most work; the RUN. Ugg! This was a bitter-sweet task, in that, I've always liked to run, but have never had any formal training and knew that this was going to be quite a challenge. I mean, come on, how hard is running? Well, as I am beginning to see, it's a hell of a lot of work, but something that's coming together quite nicely.
If I had to describe my running style I'd say I was a "plodder"... a function of too many years playing basketball, I guess. Running was always something you did to get to the other side of the court...I never really thought about how I accomplished it. And I was never told "how" to do it faster or better. So, after many years of staying within my comfort zone I decide to show up to a track workout and set foot outside the "zone" and see what changes could occur. I joined up with Andrew, Ginny and the BPR crew to see what I could learn. I'll admit, I was a bit daunted to be running with such accomplished athletes, but what I was shown has open my eyes to what I think is the start of a new love affair with running.
Andrew and Ginny set to task in providing a few very useful suggestions that have resulted in a more efficient stride, a greater sense of body awareness and speed! Holy crap...these legs are pretty speedy!
This past Sunday was the Rats X-Country Run in Kal Park. I did it last year and I think my time was just over an hour...1:03 and change, I think. This year, after a bit of training and some serious determination on my part, I finished in 53:28 and left it all out there on the trails. Man, did that feel good!
I can sense a new confidence growing with running. I have a good base built over this past year and am now combining it with some functional awareness that I can feel working. I look forward to more improvements, big and small, that can enable me to complete the run at IMC with grace and confidence.
For now, I'm pretty happy with Sunday's run and relishing in bettering my time from last year...