After arriving home from my week from hell on Friday, I was determined to get out for a big run.  I planned to run 13-16 close to marathon pace on moderate terrain depending on how I was feeling.  As I’ve mentioned in the past, I’m not one for training plans and mostly use them as a guideline.  If I’m feeling good, I push a little harder, and if I’m feeling fatigued, I tend to pull back.  I felt great on Friday.

I’ve had Hawk Hill in my sights for some time now.  Climbing almost 800 feet in just over 2 miles, its panoramic vistas of San Francisco and the Marin Headlands are worth the hurt.  Despite logging many ascents on two wheels, I decided that Friday would be my first time on two feet, and I went for it after crossing the Golden Gate Bridge.

What followed was an amazing run up the single track where I was joined by only camera toting tourists, cyclists and hawks.  I practiced pacing for Quad Dipsea and North Face Endurance Challenge by keeping my heart rate low on the climbs, letting loose on the flats, and flying downhill.  Overall, I logged 14 in 1:57 with almost 1500′ of elevation gain.  It’s a ways from the Quad Dipsea’s ~9300′ over 28 miles, but I was more than happy with the results after a long week of travel.