My Partner's Back

Five mile tempo run today. According to my log, this was my fastest 5-miles on Sunset -- 56:30 or a 9:18 pace. Temperature was much cooler, just 71 degrees. So that helped. But my running partner also helped -- a lot.
Butch has run 36 marathons (one 50-miler). He stopped when he could no longer do them in less than three hours; usually he ran them in 3:15 to 3:45, or about an 8-minute pace. He used to run 10K races at about a 6:30 to 7:00 minute mile pace. Now he's slowed down a bit and he logs fewer miles, but he keeps on running. He took a few weeks off after a calf injury incurred in the Dam to Dam in Iowa in May, but still cross-trained on his bicycle. He did intervals on his bike while I ran -- handing me water, and encouraging and coaching when meeting up with me. When the calf started to heal, we ran on the track. We could each run our own pace and distance that way, yet stay within eyesight. And we could motivate each other when one of us lapped the other. And it was good, much better than running solo. But it just wasn't the same as having a verbal coach right alongside.
But then a notation dated July 8 in my running log states, "with BP. Yeah!" And another on July 10 states, "BP is back!!" We had run two races at that evening's track meet.
Today he ran four, and I ran five. I left him around the first mile, turned around at the 2.5 mile point and headed back home. I saw him a mile later and picked up the pace, hoping I'd catch him. He heard me coming and picked up his pace. I tried a bit harder. So did he. I finally caught him at the crest of the hill on Morningside, just a few yards from the post that marks our starts and finishes. He beat his previous "Sunset 4" by three minutes. And I beat mine as well.
According to my running log, I'm running about two minutes per mile faster than I did a year ago. Back then my NY virtual running partner kept me honest and kept me disciplined (and he still does!).
But there's nothing quite like having a real time running buddy to chase.