Can You Say Hills?

I dropped the kids off at their pre-school this morning, parked, drank some more water, and headed out on my long run. My plans: 18 to 20, or as much as I could get in in the 4 1/2 hours I had while the kids were in school... by the time I actually got out running it was closer to 4 hours.

I have a 3 mile loop that I do near school. It is incredibly hilly. As a matter of fact these are probably the toughest hills that I have ever run in my life (that's a long time, heehee). So after each 3 mile lap, I replenish with water. After the first loop, I was fine. Ready for another one! Second loop, still ok, needed a bit more water... legs feeling the 6 miles (since I finished my last long run of 15 on Friday...) Third loop... 9 miles! Felt good, but at this point completely drenched in sweat. Starting to slow down a bit. More water. Fourth loop. Ugh. 12 miles. Almost a half marathon. But did I mention those hills? Really getting up them at this point was so difficult. Each step was an accomplishment. More water and half an Odwalla bar. Fifth loop. 15 miles. Again, the HILLS!! What's going through my mind?

Just keep looking down. I'm sure my sunblock has worn off, because I can feel the heat on my shoulders. Just keep moving forward. The song from the children's Christmas special: "put one foot in front of the other, and soon you'll be walkin' out the do-o-or..." Then: "I'm Mr. Heat Meister... Did I mention it was 90 degrees?

OK, one more loop. Loop 6. 18 miles. Barely got through it. The hills were a killer. I started to see my friends pass by in their mini-vans and SUVs passing me to go to the preschool to pick up their kids. And I made it back to preschool in time hobble in to pick up the kids. On the way out I said hello to the road construction worker that I passed 6 times. He was "mighty impressed"!

On another note, tomorrow is Show and Tell for the preschool class and they are supposed to bring in some thing that starts with the letter of the week, "L". I have picked some things for them to choose from. Here's my list:

Ladle
Light (small flashlight)
Lollipop
Lemonade
Lock
Lipstick

I wonder which ones they'll pick.