Disaster in the Desert!

Distance: 3 miles
Time: 31:19

Today's run was probably the worst since I started running again 3 months ago. This was mainly because of an uncontrollable factor: the weather. We are in the middle of a serious heat wave, and I made the brilliant decision to run 3 miles at 11 a.m. It was 90 degrees outside, but it felt like 100, and to top it all off, it was uncharacteristically humid for the desert. It was weather I wasn't prepared for.

I mentioned in my last post that I needed to increase my distance in preparation for the Apple Valley Mud Run this Saturday. Well, the timing couldn't have been worse. I woke up this morning and excitedly mapped out a 3-mile route. It would be my farthest run in over a year. I decided to start right from my house, but instead of heading east like I usually do, I made the route head west, past Central Road. I mapped out a course that would take me through the semi-industrial, semi-undeveloped area just west of our neighborhood. I figured I wouldn't have to contend with much traffic out that way, and there is a lot of wide-open space amidst the office buildings. So, with my route mapped, I began stretching and getting pumped for the run. Deep down I knew that 3 miles was going to be a struggle, but the optimist inside of me kept thinking that I may be able to handle it quite well, as long as I maintained an easy pace. So I headed out my front door and began running west along Powhatan Road. The first mile felt great. I was feeling good and the heat wasn't too noticeable yet. But things changed fast. By the time I got to the corner of Ottawa and Manhasset I was beginning to feel the heat weighing down on me. South of Ottawa, Manhasset becomes a dirt road, and it was here, just over a mile into the run, that I had to stop. I realized I was sweating much more than usual. But I hated that I had stopped, so I forced myself to keep running. Then I got lost. I wasn't sure where the next turn was and I ended up running farther than I should have. I realized my error and promptly turned around and got back on track. I stopped two more times before I got back up to Ottawa. By the time I reached the 2-mile mark I had decided this run was turning into a disaster. The heat was draining me of everything I had. It was like fighting against a monster, and there was no winning. The humidity was making it feel like the heat was a giant blanket draped over me, keeping me from mustering any bursts of energy. Complete exhaustion was setting in. I ran up Malaki Road to Powhatan, and yet again had to stop. I had never had to stop so many times in a run before. I felt my willpower leaving me, the sun was draining it out of me. I took comfort in the shade of some trees along Hitt Road, and then continued on up to Highway 18. The vintage Western buildings along Hitt Road provided some distraction from the suffering I was enduring, but I knew I still had half a mile to go, and I was running on fumes whilst feeling my body temperature dangerously rising. I staggered along Highway 18 and turned down Tonikan Road. This was essentially the final stretch. After one final stop, I ran down Tonikan determined to finish strong. I rounded the corner and was back on Powhatan with the finish line in sight. Amazingly, I actually was able to finish strong. I wasn't able to sprint or anything, but my muscles used whatever they had left and powered me to the end. I finished absolutely enervated. I was burning up from the sun, the humidity still felt like a 50-pound blanket covering me, and now I was overexerted. I still had to walk a quarter mile home, which would have been my cool down, but was instead a death march. I was overheated, I couldn't stop sweating or panting, I needed to get out of the sun. I became actually scared of passing out, something that's never happened to me before on a run. I began feeling a tingly feeling all over as I walked. I finally made it to my house and quickly went inside and began drinking profusely. After that I splashed water on my face over and over. I was doing anything I could to get my body temperature back down, because I knew it was dangerously high. I didn't stop sweating for probably 30 minutes, and it was probably 2 hours before I felt completely normal again. I had overdone it.

I've often run in the heat before, but I've been living in the desert for only 10 months, and this is my first experience enduring a Mojave summer. Desert heat, as should have been obvious, is something quite different from the heat of the Inland Valley where I used to live. I underestimated the heat, and didn't take into consideration the humidity. The result was a fight against nature that I lost. My original goal was to try and get my 3-mile time under 30 minutes, and, surprisingly, stopping as many times as I did, I ended up with a 31:19, not too far off from my goal. With better conditions, I should see that time drop fast. (Previously my worst 3-mile time was 23:05, set in September of 1994). As soon as I finished running today, I told myself I wouldn't run in the daytime again until the weather began to cool, which may not be for another month or more. If I'm going to begin running longer distances, I need to run smarter. So it'll be evening runs for a while now.

I've included a lot of pictures here. Obviously heat isn't evident on a photograph, but the prevalence of clouds indicates the unusual humidity in the desert. The top 3 pictures show the Western themes that liven up many Apple Valley roads. Hitt Road in particular is a throwback to the days of the Wild West. The next picture down is Manhasset Road, the dirt road where I began feeling some heat exhaustion. The bottom picture is the corner of Ottawa and Malaki, the 2-mile mark of the run. When the weather improves (as well as my endurance), I can't wait to tackle this run again.