Pre-race

Once again, here we are. The final hours before the big race. This is no ordinary race though. I have been training for 6 months for this. Yet, I'm not quite sure what to expect, especially in the lask 10k.

The weather is supposed to be very nice. Sunny with a temperature of 5C (41F) at 9am to 11C (51F) at noon, with light wind. I made myself some disposable arm warmer off an old long sleeve shirt, so I'll start the race with them and discard them if I become too hot.

I am pretty sure that I'm getting a cold. I feel that dryness "behind" the nose and my sinuses feel funny but I should still be ok by tomorrow morning. What are the chances? I haven't been sick in a LONG time.

The top of my left thigh hurts a bit when I walk. I have no idea where that came from. It didn't bother me yesterday when I ran, so I'm not expecting any grief from that. 

I feel prepared. I wish I had done a bit more mileage, but then I might have got hurt. 

Race goals. Of course, I do have some. 

My "A" goal is to finish in my target time, the one I've been training for, of 3:30. That would be amazing. Plus, that would qualify me for Boston, which I would probably run if I do qualify. 

My "B" goal is to finish under 3:52, which would be my base pace at which I ran my 20 miler. I felt I could have taken it home after that run, even though I was tired.

My "C" goal, of course, is every first timer's goal: to finish. Whatever I do will be amazing. Running 42k is in itself an amazing accomplishment, so there would be no shame in that.

I feel a bit empty, but calm. My focus is entirely on the race. I think about what I'm goin g to bring tomorrow, what I should eat, what I should wear... My family is letting me be weird and I'm allowed more "alone time" than normal. I think that they will be happy when this is over. 

This is it. I will tie a few loose ends and I'll be ready to roll.