This was the first full day where I would have company for every mile of the run. The plan was for Mark and Dave to run the lion's share of the day with me in shifts and then for Steve and Mark to run the last few miles with me. I ran the first 5 miles with Dave and at the first water stop I had a few aches and pains in my legs. Dave massaged the pains out of my calf muscles at this point and I was able to continue running a lot better.
Mark ran the second stint with me and we were being supported by Dave in the "rennal car" as opposed to the RV. It was quite something to be able to talk to people during the day and the miles flew by. This was helped by that massage which had really had a positive effect on my legs.
14 miles were done in the morning session and it was off to the RV for lunch and a Tactical Snooze. Shelli had made Mac and Cheese with chicken which was fantastic and was to provide a lot of energy for the afternoon session. Dave, again, managed to work on my legs during this break. It was very obvious that I hadn't had a massage for 3 weeks and there was a lot of acid and knots to shift. My legs were in a pretty bad state.
With temperatures again in the 90s it was a tough afternoon session but it was just a case of battling through the hot and humid conditions. Steve joined me at the 28 mile point with Mark joining the Geordie convoy at 31 miles. I said to them that I fancied a quick finish. This prompted Steve to put his foot down a bit in an attempt to get to the finish with us. Steve was a great pacemaker and I was able to accelerate past him with Mark. Steve, Mark and I jostled for 1st place which saw me running at a very unusual 8 minute mile pace.
We finished running the last mile, which was uphill, at 08:15 pace and the lads let me take 1st place. It was a brilliant feeling to be running that fast at the end of a 35.6 mile day. What a great day! I said to the Big Guns that it would be quite a while before I run that quick again! My usual line is "I'll pay for that tomorrow". The reality is, thanks to drinking Cherry Active, that I have a 99% chance of having no pain in my legs tomorrow.
