Weekly Wrap...November 26

         
 After about a month hiatus from running, I finally got back at it this week.

I ran Baltimore in October when it was still warm and then a Monster Mash 5K a week later, so this run last week was my first "Official" Fall run!

My sister brought me this shirt back from the Chicago Marathon last year and believe it or not this was the first time I wore it! The short sleeves were just perfect for the weather!

I haven't been on this trail in a while so for some reason I was a little frightened. I don't know why because I've run this trail hundreds of times before but I guess it just felt "spookier" now that it is fall.

I ran with only one earbud in so I could stay alert!  I continued to take the path through the woods and every one I encountered looked suspicious to me (of course that was all in my head).   I saw people walking dogs, other runners, and people walking along the water but when I saw a random guy walking my way from another connecting path in the woods I got nervous.  We acknowledged each other with a quick "Hi" and then I picked up my speed so I could get far ahead of him. I didn't feel comfortable knowing he was behind me.  And then I thought "O darn, I'm gonna wear myself out  by running this fast and if someone attacks me I'm not going to have any energy left to fight back".  I don't know why I always think the worst when I run!  I was far enough ahead of the random guy and I never saw him again.

After that I slowed down and got in a comfortable pace. I enjoyed running on all the fallen leaves and hearing them crunch beneath my feet. Aww, this run just felt so refreshing!  Now I know why people love Fall Running!  At one point I almost lost my way (yes, on this trail I've run hundreds of times before) because the paths were all covered with leaves and I didn't know which way to turn to go on my normal route.   My Garmin died before I was done with my run, but because I know how far my usual route is, I know I ran over 3 miles.  For my first run in a month, I was very pleased.

Once again, I did not run a Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving and its too bad too cus it was a beautiful day for one on. One of these years I'll run it!  It was a nice day on Saturday too so I got out for a little run then too.   Maybe this week I'll get back to running regularly so I feel prepared to run a Christmas race if I want to.  -M

Do you have a running route that seems "spookier" at certain times of  the year?

Happy Trails....or not

The other day I was up bright and early to do my  run on the rail trail. I had my ipod and Garmin ready and was excited to do my run.  As I approached the trail I noticed a swarm of students running my way.  It was the local High School/Middle School cross country team.

I don't know how long these kiddos had been out on the trail but boy they looked beat. Either that or it was just way too early for them. As to not intrude on their run I decided to run the opposite direction on the trail.  I ended up running towards even more kids running up the trail. I noticed not one of them looked happy and none of them were wearing any tech type clothing. They all had cotton t-shirts on. What are these coaches teaching them? Why aren't they wearing breathable fabric?  No wonder they all looked so miserable.

Okay, back to my run.  I was feeling good and thought I was having a pretty good run.  After the first mile I looked down at my Garmin and noticed my time and thought,  Gee, that kind of stinks. I had to remember that I was going for good solid mileage and not time. I also had to remember that I was listening to the radio on my ipod. EVERY time I listen to the radio instead of my running playlist my time is slower. It must be because I don't have control over the upbeat music that I usually run to and also listening to people talk does not make me run fast. This is one reason I don't think I could ever listen to a podcast while I run.

In the end I did complete 5 miles and was pleased.  I mentioned last week about how I had pain in my knee after the run. I iced it as soon as I got home and hadn't had a problem since.

How was your last run? Do you ever listen to the radio on your run?  -M

A Breakthrough....

I've started to run a 2 mile loop around my trail. It's an easy start to help me get back into running yet in away it's not that "easy" of a route because this path is not a traditional running trail.

I usually

Running Mad...Alice in wonderland themed virtual with some forrest friends

As a Mother’s Day gift I registered my mom for the Running Mad virtual race that was sponsored by Mom’s Run This Town running club.  Since we do most of our training runs together, I figured this was something we could do together as a mother daughter team.  Also, since the theme was Running Mad, ( Alice in Wonderland and the Mad Hatter), this race was perfect for these Disney fans! There was a 5k, 10k and half marathon option. I committed us to the 10K option. At the time of registration, neither of us had raced that distance before so I thought it would give us something to work towards. The race didn’t start till July, so we had some time.

Let's Talk About Your Running Route....This is what I've encountered!

What do you look for in a running route? I hate running on roads with cars, stopping at red lights, and worrying about whether or not the sidewalks are even and if I will trip.  Because of these facts, there are two running routes that have slowly become my favorites.

Island Park
(picture from state park website)

One of my favorite routes to run is a place called Island Park. This is literally an island surrounded by the river on all sides.  There is a nice path, half paved, half gravel around the soccer fields and then a path that continues in a wooded area.  This is one place that I make sure I have a partner with me when I run. I just don’t like the fact that it is so secluded.  After this weekend’s run at Island Park, I now have another reason to not run there alone.

 I met my parents at Island Park around 7pm.  No worries here as it was still completely day light!  We did two laps around the entire island ( including the wooded trail). My GPS watch hadn’t hit my mileage goal yet so I continued to walk on the path near the soccer fields. My dad walked with me until my watch registered a 5K. As we said our good byes, I told him I was going to continue the path around the soccer field ( I needed to get in another mile for the Boston Remembrance Run that was closing out tonight).  The path around the soccer fields is pretty open and it was still light out so I felt comfortable doing the lap alone (and there were other cars in the parking area, so I knew there were still people in the park somewhere) My dad walked back to the car, and I continued down the path.  When I got to the curve in the path, I remember saying “O My God” outloud!  I just stood there, I didn’t know what to do.  There was a deer in my path.  I figured that it was more afraid of me than I was of it. (Isn’t that usually the saying?) I figured as soon as it spotted me that it would run away. That was clearly not the case. That deer was literally staring me down.  I thought about just continuing on my way, but I was afraid that if I ran past it, that it would follow after me.  I decided to take a step up on the grass near the soccer field ( away from the deer) and at that time the deer hissed/snorted and went up on its hind legs. Yes, I was a frightened now! It pranced over to the side of the wooded area but did not go in the woods. It still had its eyes on me. I took a little short cut through the soccer fields and ran back to my car.  I figured I could do another lap but modify the route a little. I grabbed my phone just in case I saw anymore deer I could take a picture. By the time I got back up on the path my GPS watch had gone dead. I used this as a sign that it was time for me to just go home.  I went home and did my last .78 miles on the treadmill!  

I’ve told this deer story to a few people this weekend and it still shocks me each time I tell it. It was not an “Ahh, I saw( from a far) a beautiful deer along my run”  it was a “OMG, I have encountered a deer”.  And that is just one more reason why no one should run alone!

The Rail Trail
(Picture from Rails to Trails website)

My other favorite route is a rail trail which is a running/biking trail through a farming community.  The positives of this trail are that it is completely flat, and no worries of cars, red lights, or crooked sidewalks.  It’s a popular trail, so I feel comfortable even when I have to run it by myself. The downside is that a lot of the trail is open field so there is little shade in most areas, and there are no water stops.  I use to worry about wild animals coming out on the trail, but so far I’ve only had to dodge bunnies, chipmunks, the occasional cat, and once had to jump over a gardener snake.  If I hadn’t been running at such a good pace, that snake may have flipped me out but I didn’t see it until I was practically on top of it so I just jumped over and kept going.  There are beautiful signs of nature along this trail too. I’ve seen the sunset a few times from this trail and this is also the trail were we saw the calf being born!

 

Do you have a favorite running route? If so, what makes the route your favorite?