Some flagging confidence but reason for optimism

Having gone out of town unexpectedly late last week, my confidence was starting to flag for the upcoming marathon given that I wasn't hitting my needed paces on my various runs -- all outdoors, all on as flat an area as Erie is.

Back on the treadmill today, the pace was feeling nice and comfortable. So, maybe it was the change of routine or time of day? Other pressures that I wasn't consciously feeling? Who knows? Things went well today, so hopefully the remainder of the week will continue apace.

And I just looked at the forecast.

Temperatures look fantastic, with the entire race being in the 50s. (Sure, it'll be a bit chilly standing around  beforehand.) The trickiest part is the winds. So long as I can draft off of the pacer (yay, there should be a 3:15 pacer!), I should be all set. The main thing I'll need to figure out in advance is when I want to break away to pad some more time. That will depend, in part, on just how far under the goal time the pacer is in the late stages of the race.