4 laps

Ouch. I ran at Burke Lake today -- 4 laps. That's 18 miles. Ouch.

It started out great. It was 21 degrees and the sun was out. At 8:00 am, the ice on the path was still cold and non-slick. However, after 2 laps (or approximately 9:30 am), the sun was melting the top layer of the ice, making it a little treacherous. The last lap was mighty slick, and that's why I slowed down so much on my last lap (and I'm sticking to that... um... excuse).

It was actually a good run. I wasn't the only one who thought Burke Lake would be a good place to run. Even over the summer, I didn't see as many runners as this morning. After 10:00 am though, I didn't see as many (they probably saw the slick ice and said forget it -- which was probably the wise decision).

I ran 18.00 miles (again, no extra hundredths, although I was still a 1/2 mile from the car) at a 10:31 pace. The first 10 miles were a bit faster though -- probably by 40 seconds per mile.

I'm glad I ran it. It'll be interesting to see if I can run 18 again next week :)