I think I deserve a week off

I've only run once this week. I'm rationalizing it by saying that I did a race on Saturday, so I deserve to take a week off. The real reason is that I already know I'm not going to be doing a long run on Sunday, so I feel like the rest of the week is a waste. Of course, I know it's not. Even short runs move me closer to my goal.

I did do my interval workout for my Monday run, and I hauled ass. I actually increased the distance without sacrificing any speed. I feel sorry for anyone on the treadmills around me when I do that. I know how much I sweat when I throw in those intervals, and I would have to be supremely unobservant to miss the droplets flying. Anyone on the 'mills around me should understand that the forecast in the gym is cloudy with a 80% chance for salty rain. On the other hand, if they're generating so little sweat that they can notice mine, they're probably not working hard enough.

The company doing the photography for the Torchlight has pics available for purchase now. They're ridiculously over-priced. I can understand that they need to be able to make a profit, and they spend a lot of time taking photos and probably don't have all that many people that buy them, but really? $25 for one DIGITAL photograph downloaded to your computer? That's a cool bit of robbery even considering that the photos are HD. Of course, I could download all of my photos - 3 of them all taken at the finish line - plus the 4 stock photos of the starting line (I'm not pictured), the pace car (again, not pictured), stretching (wait... no, still not pictured), and a picture of the Alaskan Way Viaduct complete with non-race traffic. That little package will only cost me $52, but they'll gladly give me free shipping. On a digital download. I'd gladly pay $5 per digital photo, and I'd grudgingly pay $10. There's no freaking way in hell that I'm forking over $25 for three photos, and one of them is really of someone else and I just happen to be visible.

That being said, my pics are beautiful. They're the best pics ever taken of me during any physical activity. Since I was no longer a Torchlight virgin, the presence of cameras on the course did not come as a surprise to me, and I took that into some consideration and kept my eyes open for them. Every time I saw a camera anywhere I put on the biggest grin I could pull out of my pocket and often gave a wave or mock salute. I'm sure someone at home is flipping through their parade photos wondering why there's a sweaty runner with a grin waving at her in the photo set. Please, ma'am, consider it a compliment. I cared enough to make your picture interesting. I'm way more exciting than Miss Seafair or the Pirates.

Somehow, in spite of having 5 miles worth of picture taking room, the only place my ugly mug shows up is at the finish line. There are three pics of me crossing the timing mats at the end of the race. I love these for a couple of reasons. First, either taken on their own or when compared to my finish line pics at last year's race, it is obvious I'm running. Not jogging, not trotting, and certainly not power walking. No, I am very obviously running. In last year's photos, my ambulatory status is inconclusive. Was I running? Had I given up and started walking right at the very end? Actually, I remember walking until I saw the finish line then running. I must have been in the process of stopping to divest myself of my timing chip as I crossed the finish line. Note to self: don't stop running until the time to stop running has come. The second thing I love about these photos is that it looks like I'm having fun. Yeah, by this time I'm really tired. After all, these pics did happen in the last steps of a five mile race, so of course I'm tired. But I look happy and energetic. Plus, I just generally look good.

I feel kind of bad about the other guy in the pictures with me. He just kind of got a little screwed in the picture department. I went and looked up his bib number on the photographer's website, and the only one's of him are mine. And they're very obviously MY pics. I hate to harp on this, but I am the main subject of the photos. Except for one, and in that one we're at worst (from my PoV) co-equal. Then there's the look on the poor guy's face. He looks completely gassed. Now, from a physical standpoint, I wish I looked more like him. He looks like he didn't leave anything out there. By time he got over the line, he was struggling just to come up with the energy to stand much less finish. I, on the other hand, look like I could run another five miles. That's not cool. At the Lake Union 10K I will leave it all out there. I looked his bib number up on the results page, and even though we're ending at the same time he beat me in the total time to race. Only by about a minute, which means he was probably running a 9:15 mile compared to my 9:24. I hope he had a friend on the route taking his picture.

No long run this weekend, like I said. I may do a short run or two over the weekend, but my next specifically scheduled run will be next Wednesday. I hope Seattle temperatures return to normal by then. We've broken all-time records the last couple of days with temps over 100 degrees. I feel no compulsion to run in temperatures like that, and even being in the air conditioned gym on the treadmill doesn't appeal to me when it's like that outside. It's amazing how much of a wimp I've turned into in just three years.