Christmas Morning Along the American River

Time: 126:14
Distance: 30.03k
Pace: 4:12/k
Map

My mom, Meagan and I arrived at my cousin's house in Sacramento late last night after a Christmas Eve church service that I was dragged to attend. The highlight was not lighting a candle, listening to Christmas carols or seeing a junior high classmate, though those were all fine. The best part was seeing Guy Fieri of Diners, Drive Ins and Dives (Triple D) hanging out with his family just like a normal guy. It brought back memories of the summer in Oklahoma where I got to meet him just up the street from my shitty apartment on Main St.

Being Christmas morning we got to watch the kiddos open their presents before heading out for a run. The goal this morning was to have Meagan run 30k on tired legs at a good clip. The hills of Annadel has both us feeling like hobby joggers. Our route would take us from the house, run 2 kilometers to the bike path along the American River, out to the 15k mark and then back. Hopefully, the pace would gradually pick up and we would be running between 3:55 and 4:10 per kilometer. That's not crazy fast, but certainly an honest effort given where Meagan is at with her training.

Splits:

Split	Time	Distance	Avg Pace
Summary	2:06:13.9	30.03	4:12
1	5:06.3	1.00	5:06
2	4:38.8	1.00	4:39
3	4:39.2	1.00	4:39
4	4:14.4	1.00	4:14
5	4:14.3	1.00	4:14
6	4:09.4	1.00	4:09
7	4:09.9	1.00	4:10
8	4:06.8	1.00	4:07
9	4:05.3	1.00	4:05
10	4:05.5	1.00	4:05
11	4:05.4	1.00	4:05
12	3:59.0	1.00	3:59
13	3:59.6	1.00	4:00
14	4:03.5	1.00	4:04
15	4:09.9	1.00	4:10
16	4:08.4	1.00	4:08
17	3:57.7	1.00	3:58
18	4:02.4	1.00	4:02
19	4:06.7	1.00	4:07
20	4:02.6	1.00	4:03
21	4:06.8	1.00	4:07
22	4:04.6	1.00	4:05
23	4:05.4	1.00	4:05
24	4:01.9	1.00	4:02
25	4:06.8	1.00	4:07
26	4:02.6	1.00	4:03
27	4:01.4	1.00	4:01
28	4:39.0	1.00	4:39
29	4:26.2	1.00	4:26
30	4:25.6	1.00	4:26
31	:08.7	0.03	4:11

As you can see, the pace dropped gradually and was pretty much locked in at 5k. The splits from 6k until 27k ranged from 3:58 to 4:10 with most being about 4:05. The terrain dictated the pace as some sections had brief inclines. Meagan was working at about 20 kilometers, but I think it was more due to a hot spot developing in her right foot.

It was good to accomplish this workout in the morning as we were able to enjoy a great Christmas with family the rest of the afternoon. Let's just say I won't have to curtail my Starbucks' coffee habit anytime soon.