I haven’t completed a 3 km time trial since April 9, having run a 12:12 on that occasion and, previously, a 12:53 on March 19. And I haven’t run fast over any distance further than a 1 km since a lap of Centennial Park on April 16, so I was not expecting much today when I attempted another 3 km TT.

I needn’t have worried. Despite my legs feeling heavy and without any zip, I still managed the 3 km in 11:55 (4:02, 4:06, 3:47). I eased off during the second kilometre when I felt a twinge in my left knee, but it disappeared as I upped the pace in the final K. It was nice to go under 12 minutes, although it makes me wonder how I managed to run a 10:08 on the same course just three years ago. Then again, I was nearly 5 kg lighter then. If I can ever go under 11 minutes again, I’ll be very happy. But at 57 years old, I’m not counting on it.

Another photo below, from the prairies of South Dakota, where I was running this time six years ago. It can be daunting when you look down a long road, knowing you have to traverse that distance on foot. Thankfully, this was a back road, parallel to the interstate highway. And that was pretty much the case with all the interstates. They always seemed to have good quality parallel roads that used to be the old main highways. With virtually no traffic, it made for easy and enjoyable running.