Distance: 2 miles
Time: 18:49
Hello! It's been a while. Well, let's see -- the last time I ran was September 26. Autumn had just begun and I was stoked because I ran a half-mile in 3:15. October came and went and I didn't once lace up my running shoes. What a shame. Work has been intense this year. At times I feel like I'm drowning in responsibilities. Coaching cross-country was fun, but it made keeping up with my teaching duties quite challenging. The result -- no time to ever run. Now, October wasn't without its physical challenges. On October 30th I accomplished a longtime goal -- to hike to the top of Mount San Gorgonio, the highest peak in all of Southern California. I did little to physically prepare for this epic adventure, but I got through it decently. Accompanying me were my brother-in-law and my friends, Scott and Matt. We pushed ourselves to the physical and emotional limit to reach that summit, but we did it. The weather was both amazing and devastating. It snowed on us for the first few miles, and then at the top of the mountain we had to contend with gale-force winds and temps below 20 degrees! But with San Gorgonio accomplished, I was able to bag the "Big 3" Southern California peaks (Baldy, San Jacinto, and Gorgonio) all within four months. And all the running I did over the summer undoubtedly helped me accomplish this goal.
After San Gorgonio I endured the customary few days of soreness and achiness. But I knew I couldn't let too many days go by without starting my running up again. For one, I didn't want to go run-less in November as well. And two, my next challenge lay close ahead -- the Spartan Race! I didn't end up running either of the Wrightwood races that were supposed to occur last month (instead climbing a mountain), but, along with Matt, I did officially sign up for the Spartan Race, which is scheduled to go off on December 4th in Malibu. My name was submitted and my money paid, so there was no backing out. Hence, tonight's run.
I was able to get out of work a lot earlier than usual today, so right away I knew I had no excuses for not running. After meeting my wife for lunch, I raced home and immediately threw on my running gear, just in case I tried to talk myself out of it. When it got dark, around 6:00, I began stretching and getting ready. It was a strange feeling, seeing as I haven't run in well over a month. I had no idea how I'd perform. I knew that my September runs were actually really good compared to how I had run over the summer, which didn't make sense to me since I only ran three times in September, and over the summer I was running 4-5 times a week. My conclusion was that I had overworked myself over the summer and had to battle with injuries, while in September I felt fresh on my runs and hence performed well. But I figured tonight would be a different story.
Have I mentioned the cold yet? Compared to last year, the weather changed much sooner up here in the desert. Whereas last year's first winter temps didn't hit until late November, this year they have been here already for a couple of weeks. When I set out on my run tonight it was a crisp 45 degrees. I threw on a sweatshirt, but I still wore my usual shorts, as I don't own any sweat pants. I just hoped my movement would be enough to keep me warm. I knew I wanted to get 2 miles in today. I never entertained the thought of only doing a half-mile or even 1 mile. With the Spartan Race coming (a 5K) I knew I needed mileage. So I set out on my standard neighborhood 2-mile route. Over the summer I had tired of this route, but since I haven't run it in over three months, I figured I'd give it a go. Plus, it's a lot easier to step out my front door and go for a run rather than have to drive somewhere. When I started I felt instantly good. It's that first moment of any run when it just feels great to be running. This feeling actually lasted till about the 1/4 mile mark. I told myself I was just going to take it slow. But soon I felt myself getting into a comfortable and steady pace. I maintained this pace all the way to the halfway point, where I took a quick breather. My split was about a 9:20. On my way back I definitely started to feel tired, but at the same time I felt able to maintain a good pace. I thought for a moment I might be able to get a good time, and not the dismal time I was expecting. The last 1/4 mile was tough, as I tried unsuccessfully to get a kick going. But to my surprise my final time was an 18:49, which, for that route and compared to my other times, was pretty good. In fact, it was the second fastest time I had ever gotten on this particular route! How on earth did I do that?! Perhaps it was the cold. Not having to deal with sweat and suppressive heat perhaps freed me up to run faster. Perhaps it was the San Gorgonio hike, which I'm sure strengthened my legs. Whatever it was, I was pleased to see that I hadn't regressed too much.
Here's a ranking of all of my times on this particular route (2 miles):
Time Date
1. 18:47 6/29/10
2. 18:49 11/10/10
3. 19:18 6/21/10
4. 19:23 7/13/10
5. 19:28 7/23/10
6. 19:42 7/11/10
7. 19:50 6/22/10
8. 19:56 7/21/10
9. 21:43 6/27/10
As you can see, I was only 2 seconds away from a course record! This gives me much hope that I should be able to easily set a new record soon.
But enough of the boring statistical stuff. What was really great about tonight's run was the atmosphere, the smells, the sights. Tonight was the first time running in genuinely cold weather since beginning my training back in May. It felt very seasonal as I ran through my neighborhood, as I could smell the burning of wood coming from chimneys all around me. At one point I could smell a strong maple aroma. The air was extremely crisp. As it entered my lungs it was like a gulp of pure, clean oxygen. Above me were millions of perfectly visible stars. All I could hear were my footsteps. It felt like I had officially entered the autumn season (even though we're 6 weeks into it). Soon I'll be running through dazzling lights as Christmas quickly approaches. All in all, a fabulous run tonight. Winter, I welcome you.
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