Reconnoiter of the Charlottesville 10 Miler

Bottomline is that I think it's going to be a killer run! Drove it this afternoon after packet pickup and if the course is not going up then it's going down. Only saving grace is that the scenery and the sights are great. The cherry trees are all in bloom, spring flowers are popping up everywhere, and the run takes in much of the UVA campus and the Downtown Mall area. So ... It's early to bed tonight to get up at 6:00 AM. The temperature is only supposed to be right around 40 degrees tomorrow during the run and once I'm warmed up that is great for running. And with the hills I should be warmed up within a quarter mile of the start!

Here's how the course is described, mile by mile:

Mile 1: long uphill

Mile 2: one of the longest and toughest hills

Mile 3: gentle mile-long rise

Mile 4: slight uphill and then the longest downhill of the course

Mile 5: relief for awhile and then the beginning of a series of climbs

Mile 6: long and gentle downhill, steep plunge and then a tough climb that eventually flattens out

Mile 7: legendary climb that is the most talked about section of the course and flattens out

Mile 8: gentle but seemingly unending uphill straigtaway is supposedly the most mental portion of the course

Mile 9: after climbing steep hill racers are greated with gentle but long and steady downhill

Mile 10: roller coaster of hills to the finish

Let's hope my knees don't collapse! More later after the run tomorrow.

Posted from my Blackberry!