Seven Weeks Out

The Philadelphia Half Marathon is seven weeks away now. I am in good shape to start the final ramp up to the longer training I'll need. In years past (from reviewing my old logbooks) this is the part where we started adding miles onto the long runs on Saturday and Sunday. The race is 13 miles, but I've never put in more than nine or ten going into the last month. I might have just enough runway.

As an added twist, we're going to "try to go dry."

Friday night, I bought a "big box" of "Wizard of Oz beer." When that's gone, it's gone. I'm not having any more beer till after the Distance Run on Septamber 18th ... and then I'll have ... well, what will it be???

Chimay is the easy answer, but maybe not. I might opt for Fin du Monde, Maudite or Trois Pistoles from Unibroue; Ommegang, Hennepin or Rare Vos from Ommegang in Cooperstown, New York. I might not even go with a Belgian style at all. September 18th might be a cool, rainy day; perfect for an early Rogue Shakespeare Stout, maybe a Brutal Bitter. In any case, it's going to be a big bottle, maybe two. If Duffy comes over for the celebratory grill ... well, being a Bud man, he really likes Pilsner Urquell, or Stella Artois - which brings us back to Belgium. McGinnis??? Well, duh.

I may be overthinking this a bit much, a bit early.

Oh ...

In case you're wondering - in July, I burned off 38 beers (even after going back in the hole for 22 on July 4th Weekend), so we're sitting comfortably at a even 350. Averaging 22 miles or running per week, and not putting any beer back in, I could (conceivably) be below 200 by race day.

Yikes.