I'm finding it hard to get out the door these days, masked like a bandit and dodging from one sidewalk to another then on to the trails and running a sort of randomized cross-country for most of the way. It's just not appealing..

Sunday was my name day. Douglas isn't a Christian name so I had to find another for chrismation into the Orthodox church, picked Thomas for a number of reasons. The apostle Thomas gets a whole week of celebration beginning on St Thomas Sunday, the week after the resurrection when the doubter felt the wounds and believed. Name days are more important than birthdays in the church life. The Greeks wish one another 'many years' chronia polla !

So, after the church livestream, and paying the month's bills, I was fully ready to do something that wasn't sitting. The afternoon was cool and rainy, a good time to try for a run. I decided to go out to the middle school track and do a 5k. This track is not synthetic but made out of tarmac weirdly, can get the full impact of road running while enjoying the frequent curves of the track.. on the plus side, it's not very popular. Another trick I found is to run along the busy roads, some traffic but not many pedestrians. This will require music - usually I like to listen to whatever's happening in nature but on the roads all you hear is the cars hissing by like the waves upon the beach.

About two miles out there to warm up, line up myself on the beginning of the curve, away we go. 2:02 for the first lap, 2:17 second, then a steady 2:14-15 the rest of the way. Lap 12 at 26:55, ok half a lap left, surely I can get under a minute for that ? nope, but made it in 27:55 for a big new PR (worst). Think I'll try to do this time trial regularly and whittle it down maybe.

My standard 5-miler from the old house went out past this track, up to the rec center and back again. I hadn't run that loop since 2009 so added it as a warmdown which turned into a long run effort, could barely move the legs up the last hill. Total 90min running, about six miles plus the 5k. Miles.. plus kilometers.. equals.. aw call it 15k 😉 

Strava gave up somewhere in the middle of the 5k and took the crow's route home..