It was bright, cold and the downs were at their finest. I took myself on a route well-trod when I lived nearer the start of the path to Bo Peep (for non-Sussex readers, a point high on the downs where there are, unsurprisingly, sheep). I was to run eight miles; from the old house I remember that it was three miles to the field just before the bostal† and, magically, as I reached the same point I saw that I had run exactly four miles. I am always amused by these serendipities of distance.
Hard work, but the lesson I learn from week two of the training is that rest days occupy their places in the training week for a reason. Trifle with them at your peril.
Time: 1:32:13
Distance: 8.25
Pace: 11:02
Total mileage this week: 29.22
† a Sussex dialect word. See the OED: ? < Old English beorh a hill (barrow n.1) + Old English stíel(e, stile n.1 But the explanation ‘seat on the side or pitch of a hill’ given by Bp. Kennett (see Halliwell), suggests Old English *beorh-steall
