7:15 am: too early to be pulling into Eagle Creek park. it's still dark and Lauren and i are whining, wanting to go back to bed.

7:40 am: we set off on the street, surrounded by about 40 other teammates who've showed up to run the 90 minute run we've got scheduled. i put in my headphones, set the alarm and settle into the run to the music of Jamie Cullum. i've realized that i don't necessarily need fast dance and rock music to keep inspired. just need music i can sing in my head to keep the voices away. i can't do anything negative, so angsty chick music is out (no Kelly Clarkson, etc). in order to keep loving life, i have to positive energy coming in...Van Morrison, Jack Johnson, The Boy Least Likely to, etc....

8:06 am: reach for a gel and my water bottle; i'm fading. really?? have i only gone 26 minutes?? last time i made it to at least 30 minutes.... at this point i am really beginning to hate every square inch of Eagle Creek and it's damn hills, despite the different scenery.

8:20 am: feeling better. almost half-way through. my mind is processing the idea of an endurance event and how it is nearly 50% mental. this is, perhaps, the best thing i could have committed to at this point in my life. every week i have to come out and push myself to go further, break down barriers, believe that i actually can.

8:50: second gel. start of the last 5K. i set off with four other teammates i've caught up to, fully expecting they will quickly pull away from me. just the opposite. i ended up ahead of them, finishing a few minutes sooner. my alarm is set for 9:10 but i've decided to do 10 minutes more and finish at 100 minutes.

9:20: i stop to walk the remainder of the 5K, just about a 1/2 mile or so. my muscles don't like this. they are so used to running that i feel like i'm being propelled forward, similar to that feeling when you get off a people walker. then Lady GaGa comes on the headphones and i can't NOT run to that. so i pick it up and run another five minutes.

9:25: officially walking to cool down, having just ran an hour and 45 minutes. Lauren and i stretch with the team, grab some free PowerBars and head for Denny's, where we eat like ravished children who haven't seen food in days.

good run. very good run.