Solo SRRC -- Sun. Nov. 7

Chilly windy day again, and distracted by R's efforts to teach us all poker, but off to DnD almost in time -- only to find nobody there. Okay. Wait a while, and almost head home to run from there, but then figure that maybe some folks might be out already (I was two minutes late), so run and check back later. Headed out for a reverse Jabish canal with a quick start: to rail trail (past crews working on the track) and at OldSpfld go right, all the way out to 21, then left and along as far as Bardwell; instead of joining canal immediately, go along Bardwell to NoWash, then up to the little trail on the left that connects back across the wetland to the canal. Forgot to bring GPS, so had phone as timer in car; seemed to have kept a steady pace that far, but heading up the canal was hard work, and I felt I slowed a bit. Up at the top, join rail trail and head back directly, running through as far as the car, stopping the clock. Later measured up on MapMyRun and got this:

Time: 1:02:31
Distance: 8.72
Pace: 7:10

Comment: wow, that was fast, given route and terrain. Running without a clock is supposed to make things a bit easier, slower -- and I was not aiming for pace at any stage, just keeping going. Quite cheering, actually. Still not close to ready for a distance race, so Monson Classic might be a strategy practice run and a social one...