Cold Weather Remedy

It used to be that cold weather didn't bother me too much. Increasingly though I find that it's harder to hit a rhythm running when it's below 20 F. Must be a symptom of old age (today is my birthday!). My remedy is to wait for warmer temps. Rather than run Saturday, I volunteered to Stephen that we wait until today, thinking it couldn't get colder than it was Saturday. It might have paid off...

Above photo is of the Rockies near Glacier NP taken last February. See if you can spot the skiers.

Movin' Slow

Taking it easy this week - went for a brief run Wednesday morning but I had some muscle soreness in my calves. So I decided to take a few days off from running and stretch out, take a warm bath, maybe paint my toenails ;-)

In the meantime I've been riding my bike and enjoying some of the dry weather. I rode to the office on the fixed-gear this morning and will probably take another ride before church tomorrow. Looking forward to warm weather.

Long run and a new bike

My abbreviated 50km training schedule reached its apex this weekend - 26 miles. In order to prepare for the Psycho Wyco on February 9th, I've been using a truncated 50-miler schedule. This weekend was supposed to be the long run and, all in all, it went well - I didn't hurry and I respected the walking break I definitely think I have the suds to stay on my feet for 50km. Of course, running 50km on a frozen bridle path may be a different story.

The above picture is a funny shot of a misshapen Brooks B-17 I gleaned from Tzuo Hann Law's journal on Crazy Guy on a Bike. I picked up a new randonneuring bike last week - a Specialized Tricross. I've ridden it a couple times already and think I made the perfect choice. It's not a Rivendell, but it's light, comfy and good looking. And it has a Brooks Saddle.

A New Year's Day Run

I went on my first group trail run yesterday. I'm getting into trail running and although I have been running 20+ years, this feels like starting over. I've never been a fast road runner; more of a jogger, really. Having decided to start ultramarathoning, I covered 43 miles at Kansas City's Brew-to-Brew last Spring. Now I want to complete some long distance events off-road.

Maybe it's too ambitious a practice. I, who never liked departing the road even for neatly manicured grass, now want to tackle muddy, rooty, rocky trails. Yesterday was decidedly a workout. Because I ran 19 miles Saturday (with 2 or 3 miles of real trail), my lower legs were a little stiff when we started. And they stayed that way all 7 miles. But it was fun running with Stephen and some of the SLUG's. Physically, it was merely an "okay" run, but overall the experience was fun because of the company and the new venue. It was cold too - about 25 F with a strong wind - I'm sure that didn't help; it's hard to see the rocks when your eyes are watering!

Content for the New Year

Here's a picture to christen the new blog. This is my experiment in blogging about running, biking and assorted other topics. More later.