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I had lofty goals for last week, skating-wise, but they got tossed on their ear when work reared its ugly head. I wound up having several late nights, and thus no further morning skates until just today. I did, however, get out on last Thursday night to skate with a local group. I don't know how far I skated (at a guess I would say about ten to twelve miles), but it was a very good evening in which I got some solid pointers on body mechanics and handling rough patches. As it turns out, I had it completely backwards in that I tend to loosen my legs and stiffen my upper body when going over a rough patch, when in fact I should stiffen my legs to absorb the shocks and relax my upper body to flow with whatever balance corrections are required. We skated out onto the Cady Way Trail, my first time on that particular trail, and I liked it quite a bit. I'll definitely be going back there.
As for this morning's skate:
Course: West Orange Trail, mile marker 5 to mile marker 1 and back
Distance: 8 miles
Overall Time: 00:50:37
Fastest Mile: 00:05:23
Average Mile*: 00:05:45
My pace was slower this morning for two broad reasons. First, it was effing cold out; 38° when I started, and 43° when I finshed (that's in American numbers, not real metric numbers). My skates had been in the trunk of my car all night, so it was like strapping ice blocks to my feet. I'm not complaining, but it did take me about four miles of skating before I had worked up enough of a sweat to feel even remotely warm. Second, I was concentrating quite a bit on body mechanics which slowed down my pace. I have to unlearn some old habits and establish new ones, and that takes concentration and drains speed. Overall I am reasonably happy with my pace. I just wish I would have motivated myself out the door a little earlier so that I could have done a full ten miles instead of only eight.
*Note: Average Mile calculated without first or last mile, since the mile from marker 4 through marker 5 includes one lighted crosswalk, another major 4-way traffic stop, plus a half dozen road crossings through downtown Winter Garden, causing the first and last mile of the skate to have an extra 2-3 minutes each way from stopping.
As for this morning's skate:
Course: West Orange Trail, mile marker 5 to mile marker 1 and back
Distance: 8 miles
Overall Time: 00:50:37
Fastest Mile: 00:05:23
Average Mile*: 00:05:45
My pace was slower this morning for two broad reasons. First, it was effing cold out; 38° when I started, and 43° when I finshed (that's in American numbers, not real metric numbers). My skates had been in the trunk of my car all night, so it was like strapping ice blocks to my feet. I'm not complaining, but it did take me about four miles of skating before I had worked up enough of a sweat to feel even remotely warm. Second, I was concentrating quite a bit on body mechanics which slowed down my pace. I have to unlearn some old habits and establish new ones, and that takes concentration and drains speed. Overall I am reasonably happy with my pace. I just wish I would have motivated myself out the door a little earlier so that I could have done a full ten miles instead of only eight.
*Note: Average Mile calculated without first or last mile, since the mile from marker 4 through marker 5 includes one lighted crosswalk, another major 4-way traffic stop, plus a half dozen road crossings through downtown Winter Garden, causing the first and last mile of the skate to have an extra 2-3 minutes each way from stopping.
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