Going against the wind

The forecasts were not welcoming at the very least. Cold, very cold. Windy, very windy. And sunny, very sunny. So I set out this morning for a longish run of 10 miles.



Cold: It was -8C or 17F.
Wind: 54km/h westerly winds or 34m/h.
Skies: Blue, with spots of clouds.

So I put on double gloves, put on the heavy shell and set out. Man that wind was really going. Straight west. I was thinking of doing little loops but I decided to tackle on the beast. Go 5 miles straight west into the wind, and get the wind on my back on the way home.

That wind was incredible and since most of my trail is in the open area with little cover, I felt the full brunt of every gust (and it was gusting). I was putting an 8 minute mile effort but wasn't getting much out of it. It really felt like I was barely running. Mile 3-4 was done in 8:56.

What surprised me was that there were plenty of other runners out there for their long runs, sharing in my misery. I won't lie that several times, I thought about taking a walk break or just going back home, but since others were toughing it out, so would I.

The double gloves were effective to the point. The wind was piercing through and my left thumb was feeling numb.

The came the turnaround (literally) in my run. Suddenly I was warmer, faster and enjoying what felt like a fast 5 miles with little effort.

The splits:
1. 8:13
2. 8:52
3. 8:56
4. 8:40
5. 8:26
6. 8:07
7. 8:08
8. 7:47
9. 8:13
10. 8:01

10 miles done in 1:23:30 with average pace of 8:20.

Weekly update:
I'm pretty happy with my mileage. I should technically be finishing my third week in an 18-week program for the Flying Pig Marathon but since I'm opting for a 12 week program, the miles in January and early Feb. are vital.

Recap

Tuesday: 5 miles
Wednesday: 10 miles
Thursday: 5 miles
Saturday: 3 miles
Sunday: 10 miles.

Mileage: 33 miles (53K)
Year to date: 103 miles (166K)