Last run before the race

Today I ran my two-mile route at my kid's school just before pickup. School is back in session, which means so is, hopefully, more regular running for me. I had really wanted to get a three-mile run in, but I played tag and raced with my kid off and on for over an hour yesterday, so I did not want to push myself too much today. That and I could not get this vision out of my head: Running my old route and falling or getting an awful cramp, rendering me unable to make it back to my car in time. As a result, my kid is left waiting for me in the parking lot, wondering why my car is there, but not I. Actually, she would not be wondering; she has expressed this very fear to me sometime. :-(

I think the run went well. I did my first mile is 10:07, which might be my best time for that not-so-fun mile (wish I had recorded my times more often). I did my second (easier) mile in 8:26, which is probably also my best second mile (I made sure I took advantage of the downhill today, fear be damned!). I did end the run with a couple trips up the 66 steps, but I felt an odd pain in my upper thigh, so put the kibosh on that pretty quickly.

Am I ready for Saturday's race? Not really. But all that I can do is give it my best and hope that I find a nice balance between pushing myself more than when I usually run and not overdoing it so I end up having to jog slowly or (gasp!) walk at some point.

Wish my luck! I will need it.