Friday, June 5, 2009

A Really Good Run

I just had one of those really good runs - one of those runs that you don’t want to end. The kind of run where you feel like you could run forever – and you want to do just that! I know we all have them, but it’s been several weeks since it’s happened to me.

It started out in the pitch dark of night, but on the horizon (if you look really hard over the houses and buildings of Dallas) I could see the sky starting to change. The temperature was around 60 degrees and is probably the last cool night before summer really gets started. There was no wind. I made it to White Rock Lake just as the sun was making its appearance and was treated to an amazing sunrise. The lake was completely still and serene. Ducks made V’s on the shoreline next to me.

And then to my complete surprise, two coyotes crossed my path. I know they are here, but I have not seen one in two years. The both looked at me from about 15 yards away and then trotted on into the narrow patch of woods next to the lake. They both looked pretty well fed – I feel sorry for the neighborhood cats!

It is pretty special to see something wild like that in inner city Dallas. In the past I’ve been treated to many owls (one swooped down on me thinking I was dinner), a beaver, coyotes, many snakes, and even a bobcat. All within our city limits. It’s really cool what you can see if you keep your eyes open.

My training has taken a turn since Jemez. I developed some pretty good tendonitis in my left ankle and could not run for two weeks. I got a shot of cortisone which helped and have been ramping up again this past week. I’ve also been doing a lot of leg weight training, elliptical, and stairs. My legs feel strong again --- and that gives me confidence going into Western in three weeks. However, I decided not to do Hell’s Hills 50K tomorrow. I just don’t want to risk injury three weeks before Western. It’s the ups and downs at Jemez that killed my ankle. I don’t have the luxury of doing that again at Hell’s Hills. So I’ll continue to run flats and do stairs for my climbing workouts until Western States. As of today --- 3 more weeks until WS100!

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