About two months ago I registered for the Wurtsboro 30k race up in Wurtsboro, NY. Then I forgot I registered, then I stopped marathon training because I withdrew from the marathon, and then I remembered I registered for this 30k.

Who runs 18 miles and change when you are not training for a marathon? Apparently, I do.

I might die on this course but hey I do have a couple of half marathons coming up and this should make those seem like a piece of cake! Right?

Well, let me tell you why I might die. The first 3.5 miles are all uphill, just about a 940 foot steady climb. Put your treadmills on a five percent incline and do that for 3.5 miles. That will sort of kind of equal what I will do on Saturday.

This first 3.5 miles is going to kill me. (image courtesy of Sullivan Striders.)

I will die probably just past mile two.

But as you can see from the elevation map it is mostly downhill from there, some steep downhills at points but ok, I think I can do this.

My last 18 mile long run when I was still training for the marathon was hard. I needed a huge pep talk from my best buddy beforehand and it was cold and windy. I ended up finishing 10 minutes slower than my 18 mile PR. It was very discouraging in many ways but yes, I did finish that run.

A few weeks later, without the marathon albatross around my neck, I’m in a much better frame of mind. I had a good half marathon, on a hilly course, last week and, what I hope, a good race plan.

That plan is not to die during the first 3.5 miles. That right there is a brilliant race plan!

But seriously, that is the plan. I’m going to treat that first 3.5 miles like I would if were a trail race, meaning it’s ok to go slow. The goal is to get up that hill/mountain and I know I can make up good time for the rest of the course.

Did I mention that it’s supposed to rain? I love running in the rain — during the summer. Thankfully, it will be a little warmer tomorrow. The high is supposed to 52 in Wurtsboro and according to the hourly forecast on weather.com it will be about 40 degrees at the start and partly cloudy. That would be perfect running weather. But sometimes weather people are wrong. I know you are shocked to hear this. So I am prepared for rain. But maybe that will make me run faster.

Anyway, I am convinced that I have lost my mind because now I’m totally looking forward to this race!