Too Competitive for my Own Good

To say I was sore yesterday would be an understatement. My neck hurt, my left hip hurt, my right shoulder hurt...the list goes on. Now none of this was serious pain, but it was mildly uncomfortable, I-shouldn't-have-pushed-so-hard-both-days-this-weekend-and-not-gotten-enough-sleep pain. Today, my goal for my 13 was to take it easy.

I had another commute run planned, this time along the West Side. Things started out fine, I ran at a comfortable pace along the Hudson Greenway, passing only a few other runners in the pre-dawn hours. Unfortunately, somewhere around Pier 40 all that changed.

There was a guy who had entered the Greenway around W 10th Street a couple of blocks ahead of me. I had slowly gained on him, not deliberately, but just because I was running faster than he was. As I got closer to him, however, he sped up, just enough to stay a yard ahead.

Let me pause here for a confession--I'm a little competitive. No, I don't have to win all the time, but I can never turn away from a challenge, even when I know it's a bad idea. If only someone had warned this guy...

He started speeding up to get ahead and then slowing down until I caught him. As far I was concerned, the gauntlet had been thrown. I sped up, caught him, and then sped up again. By now we were at Battery Park City and I knew I had fewer than 3 miles left. I was prepared for any pace it took to stay ahead. Thankfully, it didn't take much. I could tell he was trying to catch me, but I wouldn't let up.

Somewhere around the Museum of Jewish Heritage I realized I had completely lost and I let up just in time to take in the view of New York Harbor. I haven't run this stretch much lately and I forgot how amazing it is to look out and see the Statue of Liberty, the Verazano Bridge, the Colgate Clock in Jersey City. If that guy had still been behind me, I might have missed all of this. I guess the point is, I need to work on reminding myself that some days it's okay to run slow.

How about you all? Do ever struggle to keep your pace down on an easy day?