Millard to Mt Wilson, 24

Today I started my run late in order to enjoy the morning fun with the kids and  their Easter baskets.  I started out from Millard at 9:30 and ran up the Sunset Trail, then took the Mt Lowe railway through to the Mueller Tunnel, and the Mt Wilson Road up to the summit of Wilson (11.9 miles, 2:32);  returning in a total time of 4:22 for 23.9 miles.

I felt OK although the air quality was not so good.  Toda's run was 15 minutes faster than I ran on the same course 4 weeks ago.  Achilles were OK.  The pattern that's developed:  Right achilles is a bit tender going up;  left achilles is a bit tender going down.

Today I ran in a new-ish pair of Inov-8 Trailroc 255 trail shoes.  These I picked up on-line as a clearance item;  they have 6mm drop heel-to-toe and my thinking was that this larger drop might mitigate achilles stress.  They are good shoes, a bit heavier and taller than I am used to;  the 6mm drop posed no problems and I am considering running in these at Leona Divide next week.  They are not as comfortable on my feet as Merrell Ascend Gloves and the Skecher GoBionic Trails and I wound up with a blister (rare for me); the stack height is a bit more than I am used to and I did turn an ankle today with no damage sustained.

Last week I found myself speeding up in my short workouts, which felt good, although speed is not a great idea with  marginal achilles.  Indeed the achilles were a bit sore by the end of the week although  I had begun the week pretty much pain-free after the 28 miler I did last Sunday.  I chalk that up to some ill-advised 7 minute miles run at lunchtime  on the Sawcut Wash Trail.