The drama

8 September - I finish my fifth marathon.
22 September - After two weeks of light running, I push myself for the first time smashing my personal record (PR) on my regular half marathon route, TwinPeaks, by 2 minutes.
23-29 September - I break 100km for the week, including a 32 km run, which I really had to push myself on. The week contains some good runs, including a smashing hill 15km run.
30 September - I choose not to run in the morning considering a rest day, but upon getting home from work, and realising my wife had already eaten dinner, I elect to go for an evening run rather than a rest. Wanting to get some hills in at the start of the week, I head straight to Mt Eden. Going up, I feel some discomfort in my front left shin. It's an occasional thing that I've had before so I continue and summit but as I go down it becomes pain and I stop after just 3km. I walk down and the sensation is not pleasant. I limp home.
1 October - My 40th birthday! I have a rest from running and have a pretty awesome day albeit a working day. Physically though, I can still feel it.
2 October - I don't feel anything too wrong with my shin and when asked, I say I'll run in the evening. I briefly jog across the road on my way to my car and realise I won't be running in the evening.
3 October - I wake early and do my warm up. There is some sensation in my shin but not enough to deter me. I run 10km. 9km the sensations are evident but never pain. In the last 1km, it feels a little less comfortable but I complete the run. But when walking, I know my shin doesn't like me. When walking up the stairs, I have a bolt of pain. It's really peeved. But I think it's on the up because I did do 10km after all.
4 October - I wake up early. I can't feel it in warm up so I run. Not even 1km in I feel it and once I stop I know it's done. I curse my lack of patience. I really start to believe I won't be well by 20 October for the Auckland Marathon.
5 October - It's a weekend two weeks from the event. In my heart, I want to have some miles on the weekend. It's when I have the freedom to pace myself, go long at will. I have a party that day but I really just want to run. I do a comprehensive warm-up. I feel stupid because I know there is huge risk. I could just wait till tomorrow but I can't. I run 1km up the side of Mt Eden and with some premonitions I stop. I walk home and feel the sore tension along the front. I'm a fool. I know if I it happens again or doesn't completely clear up I would have to pull out of the marathon.
6-7 October - I don't run. It's now less than two weeks till the event and almost 8 days with only one run over 3km.
8 October - I take the gamble. I've had just two days rest. I initially want to be greedy and try 10km but some sensations during warm-up chasten me. I don't want to have to walk back from far away. I run anyway but loop around home twice. No sensations arise on the run. I make 6.8km and feel fine.
9 October - Putting more chips onto red, I take the chance to run longer. I aim for a loop that won't take me far from home. I feel good after a mile so decide to try 3x2mile repeats. Despite what I felt like an interminable lay-off, I can pump up the speed fairly easily and completed 14.8km without any sensations.
10 October - Now with confidence I bet all the chips by running my Orakei Loop. This one is one I fear during niggly periods because any serious niggle at the 7km mark will almost certainly leave me late getting home and definitely late for work. It's also hilly which is what I believe may have caused this thing in the first place. No sensations arise again and I'm feeling confident.
11 October - And then I rest. Hopefully this means I get to claim my winnings. The injury is over.

Such is the drama of training.