So way back in August, I spent a week at the beach. We always stay on Hatteras Island, part of North Carolina’s Outer Banks.

We usually try to stay in the town of Avon, since it is the largest town and has plenty of restaurants, but we like the Buxton/Frisco area, too. If I ever wait too long to rent a house, sometimes there are better choices if we’re willing to leave Avon, and that’s what happened this year.

We stayed at a great house in Frisco on the Pamlico Sound.

Ahhh… I love those water views.

Anyway, even though I was on vacation, I still had a marathon to train for! (And at that point, a triathlon, too!)

Our rental was from August 7-14 — meaning we were driving on Saturdays. My usual long-run days.

No worries!  I just shifted the first run to Sunday!

Only it was our first day of vacation, and I didn’t feel like setting an alarm. My training group had run 16 miles the day before, but I didn’t think I had that in me. I wanted to get at least 10.

I plotted a few route choices as I ate breakfast, and eventually hit the road. It was after 9:30 when I started, and it got hot fast!

I ran a few out-and-back streets and found a nice mile-long neighborhood loop that was partly shaded, but I was running out of water so I headed back to the house. Only six miles, so I refilled and went back out.

I headed the other way, looping through a series of cul-de-sacs in our neighborhood and back. It was hot, but I kept shuffling along. I called it quits just over 11 miles. I was OK with that!

I took a break on Monday, and ran 6.25 on Tuesday. On Wednesday it seemed like a good day to ride! Since it’s sandy, I brought my old hybrid bike instead of my road bike, and it was a good choice. There was also a lot of gravel and rocks on the road. I felt safer on wider tires!

My husband had already been out riding and warned me that it was windy. I decided to ride into the wind, so the way back would be easier. I rode out of our little neighborhood and headed towards Hatteras. I wasn’t sure how far I’d go — it did get tough as I got out of Frisco, but I kept pushing through. It was flat, so I wanted some distance.

I turned around after eight miles — 16 was far enough! Once home, I hopped off my bike and went for a 3.25-mile run. It felt good getting in a brick workout!

Thursday I took the same bike route again, only I didn’t think I’d go as far. Since Saturday was another travel day, I wanted to do another long run on Friday and I didn’t want to work my legs too hard.  I figured I’d do 10-12 miles … and when it started drizzling on me around mile five, I made the choice to turn around. It never really rained, but I didn’t mind the easier workout!

Friday, the last full day of vacation, is the only day I set an alarm. I needed to get out early!

I had a choice to make. I could do what I did on Sunday and do several loops through different streets … or I could do an out-and-back. I knew I’d need more water … but I lost a lot of momentum when stopping home and heading out again. And this time I wanted to run at least 16 miles. My training group would be running 18 the following day, which I wasn’t quite up to.

I really wanted to run to Avon.  It was probably going to be a  little too far, but I decided to go for it!

I wore my CamelBak since it holds a lot more than my handheld bottle, and I brought money to buy more if I needed it.

According to the McMillan Running Calculator, I should be between 10:24-11:24 for my long runs. I had been running on the faster end of the scale for my previous runs, but had also been having some hip tightness/soreness.  This time, I wanted to keep it slow.

My first mile was my slowest at 11:25, but then I settled into the 10:50-11:15 range. Through Frisco and Buxton, then hitting a long stretch of road where there’s nothing but the sound on one side and the ocean on the other.  I could see Avon in the distance. I knew it was going to be more than 16 miles round trip, but when I hit the eight mile mark, I was so close. I had to keep going!

Shortly after I turned around I took advantage of a beach parking area that had a bathroom, and then headed on my way. It doesn’t really matter what the distance is, I always feel good to be past the halfway point!

Unfortunately around mile 12, my iPod died. I didn’t realize the battery was so low until I headed out that morning and was surprised it made it that far. Oh well!

About four miles from home, I knew my CamelBak was running low. I grabbed a Gatorade at a convenience store — it was nice to be in the air conditioning for a minute! I was pretty drenched with sweat at this point and tried to get out quickly. I wonder what people were thinking!

Back on the road. Four more miles …

I had to stop a few times to fix my shoe as my foot was bothering me a bit. These two long runs at the beach were the longest in my Newtons, and I’m hoping the foot issue was just due to too-tight laces! I’m not sure I’ve been able to fully adjust to midfoot strike like I should be, but I do really like how these shoes feel!

Once I hit 16 miles, I knew I could stop and walk it in, but I just wanted to finish so I kept chugging along. And finally, I was done. 17.5 miles. I averaged 11:06 (pausing at the bathroom and supermarket), 3:14:13.

After that I soaked in a cold tub for a bit, showered, ate, and hit the beach!