The weather has taken an extreme turn to warmth in the last few days and I welcoming it with open arms. The snow quickly melted away and 50-60 degrees temps are in its place. The runs I am about to describe all took place in shorts, t-shirt, and no gloves and at no point in any of the runs was I regretting the decision to wear so little.

Friday I took Boomer out for an easy 3 miles and then went out myself to put in some tempo miles. I had been running 5+ mile tempo runs in just over 30 minutes so I figured a 24 minute tempo run would be considered a taper. I ran a rolling course with no net elevation change in 23:51. When I got home it mapped out to just under 3.9 miles. Roughly 6:10 pace. I think I ran a little to hard but a good workout. 8.8 miles in 62 minutes.

Saturday. An afternoon run in the park. Heather and I drove to the top of the park. She ran for 6 miles and I ran for 8. A very muddy run that left my entire backside splattered. The park was teeming with people on the first really warm Saturday we have had in a few months. Nobody seemed to mind the mud. 8 miles 61 minutes.

Sunday. My last greater than 10 mile run until the marathon. Seebo and I met at the Art Museum at 9:30 and went out for a 15 mile loop that included the Belmont Hills. The pace stayed easy which was good because I wasn't feeling very fast. Seebo and I chatted the entire way and I barely glanced at my watch. Suddenly we were 1:45 in with a couple miles to go. 15 miles almost felt like short run. 15.7 miles in 2:09.

And with that I shut the doors of my barn and hope that I have enough hay in there to keep me going for 3 hours at 6:48 pace.