Arizona: Day 3

Pima, Arizona
6:10am
I am awake, looking out onto a trail in the desert of Arizona.

Why did I wake up and why did I agree to do this? Is there anyway I can back out now? 10 miles is so long. I haven't run for a week. What if a rattlesnake bites me? Cody said she saw three of them on the trail last week. 


We start running. 10 miles ahead of us. 5 miles out, 5 miles back. 6:10 am. It seems impossible.

What if it gets too hot? What if I have to go to the bathroom in the desert? It is SO EARLY. Maybe I'll turn back early and only do 6 miles. I could probably make it 8 miles. All I had to do was say I didn't want to go. Or pretend I was still sleeping. I could go wait in the car. 


All of this, and more, was going through my head for about 4-5 miles. Yes, half of the run. I don't know why it was so hard for me to just accept the fact that I was going to run 10 miles. I have done 10 miles before, even 13 miles but it was early and I was not in the mood for some reason. I rejoiced when I saw the gate at the half-way point. Cody was there with some water, I took a swig, walked a little and then took off for the last 5 miles.

Brittani's mom caught up with me at this point and we ran the rest of the way together. Running with her made it so much better. I had someone to talk to for distraction and she pushed me to run a little harder. Our pace was a little faster than my usual pace so it was a good challenge.

Running 10 miles is awesome. I never regret a run. And even though I might whine and complain for half of it, I feel so great afterwards. I never regret it.

We got home and made a big yummy pancake-bacon breakfast. Perfect between a long run and a long drive.

We packed up, said our goodbyes, filled up the tank and hit the road.

Next stop: Grand Canyon!