Tue, Mar 20, 2018 - 35K - 04:00:00
35K One-Month-Before-Marathon Run with Two Timed 5Ks (23:41 and 27:27)
It being exactly one month before the Nantes Marathon, I decided to get the first of my required two pre-marathon mega training runs in, despite the fact that the weather looked completely shitty, which it was throughout: constant cold drizzle with light wind and no sun.  
 
On the first 5K at my IKEA loop, I got my fourth fastest time of recent years: 23:41, just behind my three January times of 23:38, 23:19 and 23:17. Then took off east into Tempelhof and Neukölln across the two-kilometer runway of the Tempelhofer Feld.  
 
Then up into Mitte and over to the starting line of my second timed 5K at Tiergarten, a 27:27, well under the required 28:26 pace per 5K needed for a four-hour marathon, a good sign. Then I set off south on a 9K warm-down back home.  
 
I've booked all planes, trains and hotels for my Nantes trip, including planning around the planned SNCF strike, so I'm all set. I hope to get my 5K time down a bit more and then we'll give the four-hour marathon another run for its money.