Last long run of 2010! Well, until the marathon

Today's run was originally scheduled for four hours, but I managed to convince Bill to lower it to three. That last hour just killed me the two times before. But those runs were valuable so I can experience the pain and anguish that I'll certainly feel in Duluth once I have about 20 miles behind me.
So today was 3 hours, 5 minutes running @ 7:30/mile pace with a 3 mile walk/jog recovery.
It's a hot one in the Twin Cities today, so I made sure I got out there early. I arrived at the usual spot in Deephaven at 7am feeling ready and raring to go. After doing the half marathon at 9 minute miles and a bunch of quarter mile repeats at 6 minute miles, I had a little laugh when I realized that I literally had to split the difference in this workout (7:30/mile).
Once I got that in my head, it was pretty easy to maintain. As I've said many times before in this blog, the main point of this style of training is to run based on perceived pace and make adjustments. So my mindset this morning was a pace somewhere between half marathon and quarter mile run paces.
The first hour went very well. I'd guess it was in the high 60's and very sunny. There was a slight wind out of the south. I made sure I took the Endurolyte tablet (electrolyte replenishment) tablet before I got started, in addition to every hour of running. It really helps cut down on the salt and sweat that pours out of me on long runs (sorry for the visual).
At the end of the first hour, I felt warmed up and a little tired but not too bad. I took a short break at my car for water, a gel, and two more Endurolytes tablets. At the end of the second hour, I felt pretty tired but anxious to kick some butt in the third hour and be done!
It turned out I got back to my car at about the 2 hour 10 minute mark, so I was a little late for my usual water break. I was really thirsty, and the sun was getting higher and the temperature rising.
By the end of the workout, I was even more thirsty and it was a struggle to maintain the 7:30 pace. As usual, at about the 2:20 mark, it became very uncomfortable to start running after a walk. The upper leg/groin area really resisted the running process, but it felt ok after about a dozen steps. When I finished up, I was ready to be done. My legs were tight, I needed water, and I wanted to find some shade. As I sit here over three hours after finishing, my legs are still sore but getting better. Really looking forward to a nap.
Here are the splits (much more consistent than previous runs, woo hoo!):
1 - 7:28 minutes/mile
2 - 7:25
3 - 7:34 (I swear there's a hill here on the path)
4 - 7:29
5 - 7:24 (going down said hill)
6 - 7:36
7 - 7:25
8 - 7:28
9 - 7:28
10 - 7:28 (consistent!)
11 - 7:22
12 - 7:36
13 - 7:26
14 - 7:27
15 - 7:30
16 - 7:05 This was just a 2 minute run as I got back to my car. I was maybe going to meet Paul at the car and didn't want to blow by the area in case he was waiting in the shade off the parking lot. So while I stopped, I grabbed a gel, water, and electrolytes.
17 - 7:28
18 - 7:28
19 - 7:43 (that darn hill, I kicked myself when seeing this split. see next split)
20 - 7:19 (that's better)
21 - 7:38
22 - 7:30
Totals: 18.40 miles, 2:57:37, avg pace 9:39/mile, 2634 calories burned

I have to say as I look at these splits in total for the first time, I'm most proud of the final three. It would have been easy to say, "I'm almost done, slowing down a bit won't hurt anything. Besides, I'm tired." But I quickly got that out of my head, thinking "This is my last friggin' run before the marathon. I got this shortened by an hour, so I'd better EARN it and get my butt in gear. I feel much better at this point than in previous weeks, so go get 'em!"