Here is my Hudson Highlander '03, Loop 1(A) map.

Here is my Hudson Highlander '03, Loop 2(C) map.

Here is my Hudson Highlander '03, Loops 3,4(B,D) map.

I decided to start and try to finish the Highlander. My leg didn't feel too bad. I knew my recovery would be delayed, but I felt if I took it easy I'd be ok. I can get away with taking it easy in long races, I think, as I get the most pain when I push it and run hard. I wasn't going to run hard for 26K on Surebridge anyway. I knew I'd be miserable if I missed this race. I figured even tho I'd be slower, I'd lose less time due to booms, so it might work out. I made the decision that the psychological benefits of competing outweighed the physical risk of further aggravating the injury.

My pre-injury goal was to be 5th and not lose a place on the final loop. My post-injury goal was to not aggravate the injury further and finish the race. I was cautiously optimistic about doing both.

I was 7th. 3.5 mins of booms or so. I had no chance at a higher placing. Time was a tad high, but not outrageously so. Very slow on road and trail runs, the places I would otherwise push. Had I been 100%, I think I had an outside shot at 4th, and would have probably been 6th. Technically I lost a place in the final loop, but only because I started it 1 second ahead of a stronger runner.

However, my concentration at the end of races is still weak. This last loop was easy, and I had company for parts of it. I most likely would have been ok alone, but late race concentration remains the mental aspect to work on once this injury blows over.