A new league record…
I felt good this morning, really good. It was a little colder than the weather report had said it would be, but it worked out in the end. My race today ended in a new PR! I lost a few minutes at the end because my legs started cramping really bad. So let’s talk logistics and performance. The cramping was not good. The race itself was fantastic as far as views. I mean you’re running down the Adriatic coast of Puglia, what could be bad about that? Now the strange thing was they didn’t have a food stop until 25km in (15 miles or so). Luckily, I brought an energy bar with me to eat in the first hour, knowing I would not be past the halfway point one hour in. The course was decent, Bisceglie and Molfetta are pretty hilly (for the course) and they have too many turns through the cities. But overall, physically the course is not very demanding.
Other than that my stomach also cramped a little at the end, but it turns out I just needed some coffee and some yogurt. When I crossed the finish line, my legs were so cramped they made me go in the medical tent. Made me, like they did not give me a choice, and it upset me. I didn’t sit down, I didn’t take any treatment, I just stood there, drank some orange drink they gave me, and that was that. I had to fill out my information in some book, that was annoying. They make such a big deal out of things here sometimes, and it bothers me. I had no need for medical assistance, they were leg cramps, I had just ran 42 km, and frankly drank too much yesterday. Yeah, I imagine I wouldn’t have cramped up if I hadn’t been so irresponsible with alcohol yesterday. But that’s not a big deal, still managed about a 6 minute PR.
So I just have 3 days left to work and then it’s time for my flight back to the US. I want to see my family, and friends, but I really don’t want to go to the US. On my personal bookface page someone threatened me via Personal Message today. Not someone I know, just someone who called themselves a Drumpf supporter who took umbrage at me calling Drumpf supporters dumb pieces of garbage. Sorry if you’re a Drumpf supporter, but I stick by my statement. Biggest con-man ever! Just packed his cabinet with a bunch of business elites and complete morons. But yeah, he’ll look after the little guy. How stupid do you have to be?
But I digress, today is about the PR. The long story short, if you’re looking for a European marathon, and don’t mind the ridiculous regulations the Italian sports federation, FIDAL, puts on athletic competition in Italy, with medical exams required, basically paying an extra fee to the federation in the form of a “RunCard”, and having to print out the email confirming your entry, which they send you, to show them at packet pickup, then this marathon is totally worth it. I will run it again, assuming I am lucky enough to still be living here. I definitely enjoyed it, and perhaps I will be able to make some helpful suggestions for next year’s edition. This was the 3rd running of the Maratona delle Cattedrali, so there should be many more to come.
Next race is the Chilly Chili 5k in Orange, CT on New Year’s Day. Don’t know what to expect there, I am going to assume I will be healed, but the conditions may not be optimal for running a great race. We shall see. But for now, I think a glass of wine and maybe an appetizer may be in order. I certainly earned some extra food today. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, I hope. A mile in the morning is going to be super tough. Oh as I turned the corner to get to the start, and could see the Cathedral of Barletta, this song came on my walkman, I guess my music was giving me a message for how I’d do today.
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