“How many miles today?' became the endless query, whether from Linda, who wanted to discuss household affairs, or from Ali, who might want homework help, or from Ronnie, who sometimes would venture to join me on shorter sections when her internship gave her time. The daily answer went steadily up: 20 miles, 23, 25, and more. I would launch in the early morning, backtiming everything to allow for feeding the dog, getting ready for work, doing my job, and coming home to eat, sleep, and do it all again the next day. The math was formidable. Consider that on particularly good days I might rip along at 6 to 7 miles an hour, or as I like to think of it, somewhat less than half the speed of the marathon world-record holder. At that rate, a 20-mile run takes well over three hours. It was like making time to watch Gone with the Wind each morning before breakfast.”