Tuesdays and New Beginnings

Okay,
Here's the stats on my last logged run:

Temp: 25 f, wind: 15 (feels like: 4)
Run: 8 miles
Afterward: Fairly well after longest run
Listened to: John Grisham's The Broker (Chapter 28-30).

Today, the first day off since "the injury":

Temp: 59 f, wind: 3 (feels like: 59)
Run: 3 miles
Afterward: Good for a 2-month layoff
Listened to: Random (lots of Train)

And so I begin training for the Lakefront Marathon (WI): Oct. 2. I'm dropping the Hansen-Brooks schedule and going with the one I know very well: Hal Higdon's Novice Marathon training. I'd like to actually do the cross-training this time and also throw in the heavy rope 3 days a week. The key is not to over do it as I think that's what happened at the beginning of this season.
Today also marks the official beginning of summa: school's out and thus begins SUMMER SCHEDULE.

So, how do you measure student writing?

According to recent NCTE "inbox", this seems to sum up the accepted theory:

Toward Authentic Writing Assessment

The best way to determine and encourage students' writing ability is to
focus on writing that is student-owned, developed over time, and
guided by ongoing feedback and supportive response. These resources
explore the limitations of current standardized assessment and
suggest alternatives for authentic assessment.