Day 99: 8.64mi, 1:18:59

I was inspired to do a long run this morning by all the media coverage ahead of Monday's Boston Marathon. Saw quite a few of them along the river doing their last training miles as well. I felt very good today. My legs felt strong even though there was a stiff headwind during miles 2 through 5. My splits are taken at milestones on my route which only approximate another mile in distance, but I took them anyway.
mile 1: 8:13
mile 2: 8:15
mile 3: 10:02 (26:29 thru 3 miles)
mile 4.5 13:33
mile 6: 13:36
mile 7: 10:01
mile 8: 8:01
mile 8.6: 7:20

Once again, as in my last outdoor run along the Charles, my pace seems abnormally steady. when I run on the treadmill, my times go up every mile as I try to keep my HR steady, usually starting at 8 mins and ending around 10 mins at 6 miles. On today's run, even though the splits are not exact miles, some of them are the exact same distance, as I run basically an out and back loop. So mile 2 and mile 8 are the same distance, as are miles 3 and 7. In both cases, my 'back' time is faster than my 'out' time. The wind is definitely a big factor, as it was in my face going out and at my back on the return. That may account for all of it, but I am still surprised that it seems easier to keep the HR under control than indoors. Maybe the wind helps keep my body cool, so my heart does not have to work as hard to regulate temperature (it was about 45F out there today, before the wind chill, and I dress pretty lightly). In any case, I was glad to get in a good long run and feel good about it at the end.