It was actually sad today to think that the marathon training for 2007 is coming to a close. I wrapped up my final 20-mile training run today, in the rain again, and thought about the next time I would have to get through one.

So I mentioned that it rained, so both my long runs this past week were in the rain, so I think that i’m ready for just about any conditions for Harrisburg in two weeks. Today was ultimately brutal because I knew it was supposed to shower for the most part, and extremely warm for this time of year. So I wore my regular long run shorts, a short sleeve drymax shirt and my rain coat … i also put on the Roadrunner sports cap. I decided that I would take the Stilleto with me despite the rain, because I figured it would be covered by my jacket, so I would be okay (and ultimately was).

The first 7-8 miles were just on and off rain, and I found myself staying fairly dry and even taking my jacket off for awhile during the first part. I was really surprised how warm it was … so I headed down Main st in Swoyersville and was doing fine until I got passed 8th street, when it started to pour … I mean downpour. I threw the jacket back on, pulled over my hood and it wasn’t enough to keep me dry in any way. After it poured on me for about 10 minutes, it let up a little bit, so I tried to wring myself out a bit .. and before I know it, it just started raining steady and would not let up. so I was at about mile 11 and now running the pouring rain. I got to the point a few minutes later where I decided there was NO technique to what I was doing now.

I realized that it was just time to put my head down and just run … I cranked up the music, and just did it. Anyway, it was raining so hard that water wasn’t draining off the road and puddling at the sides of the road, and I was running in it … so I had to find sidewalks to run on, so I turned off of Susquehanna ave and went back on to Wyoming Ave. I come to find out that running on the sidewalks wasn’t necessarily better, but in some sense it was.

So despite the struggles of this last 20 miler for the year, I got through it. I felt pretty good afterward as well, and then said to myself … I’m going to miss this distance. Its weird how that works out, isn’t it? I think of the memories this past year of these runs, between the cold in February, to nice weather in April, to blazing hot in the summer (that was brutal) and now the rain. I certainly think these runs have helped me not just aerobically, but also mentally. If I can get through the things I got through during training, BRING ON THE MARATHON!

Anyway, enough of that memory crap, its on to bigger things. I’ve got another week of lighter mileage before tapering the week before the marathon, and I think I can get through the trail run tomorrow at Francis Slocum Park, I kind of like that run (although I have to run in the morning as well since its not enough distance for me….

I’ll write more tomorrow hopefully after that ……..