It’s been a short two and a half weeks in the Twin Cities1 but it’s been a very busy two and a half weeks. No major racing, short of the 5k fun run in downtown. But I got to meet some people I previously only knew from DailyMile, and even went for a run with some of them around the lakes.
But before I go, I had to get one more run in. The original plan was for an early morning long run with my wife, but we both managed not to hear our alarms go off, so that failed. So, since I haven’t joined in on 5k Friday since it’s first week, this seemed like a good day to sneak it in at lunch.
I plotted out a course that included a cut through the delivery side of the Mystic Lake Casino, but when I got there I learned that there was a guard gate, and he was having nothing of my “can I just run through and pop out that side there?” . . . so I had to back track a bit and it threw me off. In hindsight, had I entered through the spot I planned on popping out, I would have been leaving the secured area as I passed the guard. Plus, if I hadn’t asked permission he probably wouldn’t have even noticed me. Eh, the price one pays for honesty.
I got out early enough to avoid most of the Friday night casino traffic, but still hit a busy light. I’m normally not a stop-the-clock-at-delays person, but since the point was to track my 5k speed over time, I did pause it briefly. In the end, despite the two delays (guard and light) and a significantly hillier course than the out-and-back along Scenic Drive in Knife River that I did three weeks ago, I was only seven seconds slower. Granted, the two delays gave me unrealistic mid-run rests, but I’m pretty pleased with the number.
19:41.01
Plus, despite the stop-and-go, my heartrate was steadier compared to last time’s crazy spiking action. Which is probably a good thing.
In completely unrelated news, after work and a kayak ride around Cleary Lake, we got Chinese take-out for dinner from a place in Prior Lake called Fong’s2. They had a Curry Vegetable Fried Rice dish, which, of course, I had to try. It was wicked awesome in every way and I’m hoping it will be awesome again for lunch tomorrow.
I’m going to miss Minnesota. Between Knife River and Prior Lake (a.k.a. “the Duluth area” and “the Twin Cities area”), I’ve been here nearly two months. And I still haven’t found a store that sells those “Minnesota” shirts in the Metallica font. I think we’re going to miss Minnesota. The people, the scenery, the overt presence of sidewalks and running/cycling trails; all of it. We might just have to come back.
That is all.
