Did 5 runs in Cuba last week. Sun 11K , Tues 21.1K, Wed 21.1K, Fri 21.1k and Sat 6k.
We arrived late on Saturday March 7th. I didn't have a whole lot of sleep the previous two days and did sleep really well the first night. I did manage to get a run in on Sunday morning, headed out of the Hotel and out on to the street....yuk! Its was gross , dirty , dogs chased me and I was given the evil eye by security at a nearby construction site. Headed back to the Hotel and on to the beach, the sand was very soft and was tough to run on. Headed west and around a point to the next beach and it was much better , flat, like concrete and easy to run on. Went a few Ks and was really feeling tired and hot....its the first day and I was tired and not use to the heat so I packed it in at 11K ... good start to the week.
Didn't run Monday , too hung over from my Beer fest Sunday.
Real running started Tuesday. Up before dawn and feeling good , out by 06:30 am. Headed out a couple of 2Ks to the next beech that was easy to run on. Turned around at the 9K mark and headed back to the resort. At the turnaround the Sun was above the horizon but behind the clouds. It didn't start to get hot until I hit the resort at around 18K. The resort was huge, 1K from the lobby to the beach. It was divided into two sections, each section had a 600m circle loop around the pools.. made for a great "Track" to run on. Finished off the run at 21.1K!
Wednesday I did another half on tired legs, this was my first time doing back to back "long" runs . The legs felt tired from the start... kept telling myself I was building running character! The legs actually felt the same way that I did at the 30K mark of my last Ultra. This run was started in the dark heading West , the Full Moon was setting in the Ocean as the Sun was coming up behind me.
Looking behind ....
Looking ahead ....
By the time I made it 9K down the beach the sun was almost up and the moon was disappearing in the Gulf of Mexico...
And I finished under a bright warm Sun...
Last few Ks were done in the resort , picked up the pace a bit too. It was easier running on a solid surface.....
Thursday was a rest day, after back to back "long runs" I need to rest the legs. Besides the night before I enjoyed some fine Cuban beverages.....
Friday I did another half, as I was heading out in the dark an older Woman with a raspy voice commented to me as I passe ed by " I respect that" . The fresh legs felt good, it was a bit warmer this morning so but I was getting use to it. Did the same thing as Tue/Wed , down and back on the beach then a few laps around the resort to make up the 21.1K.
Saturday I was up a bit later , it was travel day ... we were leaving at 18:30 so we had the full day. I only did a short but faster run , managed 6K with 5 under the 5:00 pace.
