June 8 and 9; The bittersweet agony of near success

Date	Place of exercise	Duration (minutes)	123 steps(s)	400 meters(s)	Start time
9 June	Orlyonok-Орлёнок	49	27.93	1:15.09	07:19

          Oh, the bittersweet agony of near success. Earlier this week I had run the quarter mile* in almost 75 seconds, 76.03 and 76.83, two times this week. Therefore, I thought it shouldn’t be too difficult for me to run just a bit faster and achieve my long-standing goal from four years ago.

The win of logic

Date	Place of exercise	Duration (minutes)	123 steps(s)	400 meters(s)	Start time
7 June	Orlyonok-Орлёнок	43	28.21		07:16

          Our first swim today. The water was wonderful! I keep telling everyone that we need to go to the sea. I mean WE as in all the kids. Elena said that when we get back to camp, we should not tell the kids that we went swimming. 

Four year record in danger

Date	Place of exercise	Duration (minutes)	123 steps(s)	400 meters(s)	Start time
6 June	Orlyonok-Орлёнок	43	27.37	1:16.03	07:32

          A real accomplishment today. Elena and I ran to the gate area as usual, but today was a wondrous day—no rain, blue sky, birds filling the sky with song.

Orlyonok great day

Date	Place of exercise	Duration (minutes)	123 steps (s)	Start time
5 June	Orlyonok-Орлёнок	44	32.25	07:31

          Elena and I ran today and are planning to run again tomorrow. I have been feeling fabulous. I was even wondering today if I would be able to run a marathon right now. Legs are fine, feet are fine, ankles are fine. I have a fabulous constitution.

Black Sea in the rain

Date	Place of exercise	Duration (minutes)	123  steps (s)	Start time
4 June	Orlyonok-Орлёнок	40	29.34	07:31

          A wondrous thing occurred recently. Elena, a teacher from Anapa in Russia, came to teach the lower levels of our English classes. This, in itself, isn’t anything to write about, but the day before yesterday, I noticed that she was wearing a shirt that proclaimed that she had run 44 km.

Moscow May 2016

Date	Place of exercise	Duration (minutes)	Classic Sprint	Dam Sprint	Start time
29 May	Moscow-VDNX	35			07:47

          Staying with a friend near VDNX. Took a lovely run through a park. I guess it’s near VDNX, but not very close. There are about 8 bus stops between the BDNX metro station and the apartment.

Final performance of Riverside Drive

Date	Place of exercise	Duration (minutes)	Classic Sprint	Dam Sprint	Start time
25 May	park	37	48.10	1:38.56	08:47

          Oh, my! On top of my game, definitely! Many times, when I begin, I am troubled by creaking knees and small pains in the legs. Today, however, straight out of the blocks, I was feeling like Nightingale at night. I might even say I was whisking along the pavement even before the final sprint.