What Happened to Winter?

I sat in my truck a quarter mile from the trailhead, cozy in a pair of flared yoga pants and an 82nd Airborne sweatshirt that my brother gave me for Christmas when he was in the 82nd Airborne Division.  On my feet a pair of dusty trail running shoes added further dirt to the car floor.

Today was my “short run”, usually a 6.5 mile out-and-back to Top of the World in Laguna Beach.  But I couldn’t get out of my car in the middle of the drama.  I couldn’t tear myself from the book in my lap (White Oleander). I needed to know whether Claire was actually going to kill herself.  I had grown to love this fictional character, and now she was about to rip peoples’ hearts out, both fictional and real, by overdosing in her despair.    And that she did.  So, terribly, terribly sad. 

And so, I finished the chapter, shimmied out of my yoga pants, put on a pair of shorts, took off the sweatshirt to reveal a blue, short-sleeved shirt.  I put on my running belt, turned on the ipod and ran down toward the trailhead, allowing the warm winter breeze blow Claire’s despair from my shoulders.

I didn’t have the time for my usual route.  I even thought about turning around and heading right back to the car since time was so short.  Instead, I talked myself into a small run.  I would run my favorite trail – Wood Creek Trail.  It runs parallel, and up above Wood Canyon.  The trail is soft and quiet.  It’s cool.  It’s shady and green with moss and ferns.  With the creek below you can almost see the fairies dash between tree trunks.  Wood Creek delivered today!

The spell was broken twice by substitute teaching calls that I answered and declined on my cell phone.  I was already running, and I couldn’t turn back now. 

After crossing the creek and running back onto Wood Canyon Trail, I decided not to turn back for a short-short loop.  Instead, I crossed the creek again for a run on Coyote Run Trail toward Rock It because I wanted something hard.  Hard fun.  In 80 F degree heat, I knew that hard was going to be harder.  (Oh winter, where have you gone?)  I went for it nonetheless.  Why?  Because I knew that it would fill me up. 

And I ran up Rock It, not all together strong, but I got the job done.  One mountain biker whizzed by me on his way down.  I saw another biker wipe out when he hit a small tree branch.  I spoke with him briefly to find that he was alright.  I left him standing brushing debris from his legs. 

I must say that winter has left us too quickly.  But I suspect that General Winter will return once or twice before the season’s end.  Until then . . . happy running, and don’t ever let despair overwhelm you!!!  There’s too much beauty out there.  Let it in.

Overlooking Wood Canyon (from Wood Creek Trail):

Ascending on Wood Creek Trail:

Today’s elevation (I’m still quite a bit away from running the elevation of Mt. Everest this month):

And for those wonderful readers who requested it, here’s a picture of my kitchen drawer reserved mainly for electrolytes and reflectors I’ve found on the trail:

Short Run at Disney

For a final mini-vacation before summer we took the family to the Disneyland Hotel (great discounts for annual passholders).  We pretty much spent all day in the Never-Never-land pool.  Needless to say, I was wiped out when I woke at 6:30 AM today.  My family thought I was pretty ridiculous to get up and run on a one day vacation. 

That’s my name – call me ridiculous : )

But, but, but . . . I didn’t run the day before, and it was time to run.  I only put in a few miles anyway.  They were tranquil but so, so hard.  That chlorine and sun and calories and sleeping in a strange place really wiped me out!

So, as the resort prepared for the Disney Half Marathon (setting up Start Line, Porta Potties, tents, etc), I ran through a downright empty Downtown Disney. 

You Never See Downtown Disney this Empty!  Never.

I have to say these 3.25 miles were about the hardest I’ve run in a long, long time.  It was like I wasn’t a runner at all.  Still I’m glad I went ahead and put in a little time. 

Scenes from the “Trail”

Colorful Roses at the Empty Wedding Gazebo

Even the ground is Interesting at Disney

And then we had breakfast at Goofy’s kitchen – the most expensive breakfast you can imagine, not unmatched by the most caloric breakfast you’ll ever eat!  I’m afraid those 3.25 miles didn’t put a dent in breakfast : )

Local Short Run: Up & Down Stonehill, Up & Down Selva

Low on time, I elected local roads, hilly roads for my short run today.  After throwing on my Disney half marathon race shirt (my first big race) I ran one five mile loop utilizing two of the biggest hills in this resort town – Stonehill and Selva.  Every time I faced the ocean, the wind blew strong against me.  One of those times was running up Stonehill – that added some resistance for a good workout.

Then, because I wanted to run against traffic, I ran the side of PCH without a sidewalk – in the midst of rush hour.  Just a bit nerve wracking, I kept a close eye on those cars racing by, ready to dive into the bushes if one made even the slightest swerve. 

Road Running!  It’s not so much for me any more.  Hardly anyone ever smiles.  I came across 3 or 4 runners (on the flat parts), all of them wearing frowns, or at least SERIOUSLY thinking (let’s just say that, they were deep in thought – they weren’t unhappy, because they were running! – or maybe I’m just too silly-hearted – but anyone who knows me, knows that’s not true!)

Well, then this silly-hearted woman ran up Selva away from the ocean. At the top I turned around and snapped a photo with my phone to commemorate the day that running up Selva was no big deal.

Miles logged this evening:  5.25

Top of Selva, looking back at the Pacific

Heat Run (or is that heat stroke? : )

A morning of errands in and out of the house, drove my son in-land (just a few miles) into belligerent heat for a doctor's appointment.  It was only 10:00 AM.   Back to the beach shack, where we have no air-conditioning (and we hardly ever need it), it felt like an oven.  I felt sorry for the baby-sitter.  But I was off again to fit in a run.  The time was 11:30 AM  (note to self, don't run around noon on the hottest days).

With little time to spare, I drove down to the marina.  I thought, this should be nice and cool -- lovely ocean breezes, plenty of water fountains to drink from.  The first fountain I ran past, a woman held the faucet on while her two large dogs lapped water straight from the fountain.  I'm talking slobbering mouths all over the faucet.  Nice. (After that I would let the water run a while before drinking)

I noticed a few other runners, in and out of the wharf, over the island, all of us practically suffering from heat stroke.  Nah, it wasn't that bad.  Sure wasn't cool next to the ocean like I thought it would be though.  Fortunately, a breeze came through.  But they were few and far between.  This will be good practice for Bulldog, I thought.  NOT. 

I'm spoiled now with over twenty years living on the coast.  Growing up in Covina, California, I suffered through quite a few 100+ degree days.  We never get anything near that here.  Seventy degrees, I call it hot.  Eighty degrees, gosh, the devil is in town!

Fun stress-free run nonetheless.  Felt good the whole time.  The rest of the day it was ice, ice and more ice (pelvis, hip and back).  It doesn't hurt to run.  But everyday, whether I run or not, later in the day, I need ice for the my accident injury.  I begin physical therapy on Monday.  And I am confident that I will come-back quickly. (Please, please, please)

Miles logged: 5.25

Cool Evening Summer Runs

If you read this blog occasionally you know that I am a morning runner.  Not today.  With the boys home from school, and me working some mornings, I need to fit in runs when I can.  And when I could today, was tonight.  This evening I ran my short run down at the marina. Restaurant lights glistened on the ocean waters which were gently rippling against a cool breeze.  Diners who had too much to drink walked zig-zaggedly  along the walkways.  A man, seemingly older than myself, taller, and quite "manly" looking walked about in a denim mini skirt while two of those diners feeling free and easy, giggled loudly behind him.  Roller bladers without gear whizzed by as I ran off of the island toward the cliffs where sadly too many people around here dive off to end it all.  Waves crashed violently, yet beautifully against the rocks there.  Young children screamed in delight as they tried to outrun the spray.

I went back and forth between taking in the ocean's supremacy, the breeze, the music, to thinking about all the things I have to do.  I refuse to think about all the things I need to do when I run, because it can overwhelm me.  When "the list" popped in my head tonight, I took my imaginary bat and hit it out of the ballpark.  Success.

Wonderful run tonight.  Total miles 5.25. 

Scheduling the Short run

I would much rather run than build strength.  Turns out though, if I want to run, I need to build strength.  But it's HARD to build strength.  It's easy to run.  (Well, not exactly EASY, but enjoyable, quite enjoyable.)

I figure part of my problem with strength training, is that I run myself ragged.  In other words, I'm too tired to strength train.  On my off days, I'm on the elliptical or in the pool.  Rarely am I working on strength.  Recently I added planks to my routine.  I've improved.  But I dread them.  Just as I dread ab work, push ups, or that giant exercise ball that sits in the corner of my livingroom between the baby grand and magazine rack.  It's no wonder that my core is weak, though not as weak as it has been since I've been working on it (post hip injury).  It's weak, because I simply don't work it enough! 

So, I'm switching things up just a bit with my running.  I'm forcing a short run once a week.  That's not an extra run, but an existing run each week will be less than five miles.  Sure, I get short runs in occassionally.  Not because I want too, usually because I have too -- recovery, time constraints or injury issues.  This way, I figure, I'll give my body a break and a little more time to work on the core.  Not an earthshaking routine change.  But let's see if lightening up some will help me get to that core work more vigorously.

Miles logged this morning (nice, flat, cool miles down at Doheny Beach and the wharf): 4.60   

Who Needs A Camera When You Have a Phone (And Who Needs Black Clouds When You Have Running)

I hadn't planned on running today. But this gal (that's me) who was crying the blues (literally), decided to take a break, and squeeze in a quick run anyway -- a flat run, right here at the edge of the Pacific. I wore a watch to keep track of time and carried only my phone (which turns out to take pretty dang decent pictures -- and I don't have one of those fancy new-fangled phones either).

I ran along the street and crossed over the island, running down the ramp to a shaded sidewalk that lines the parking lot. And when I came out at the other end, here is what greeted me and lifted that black cloud from my eyes:

Sure it's kind of a boring picture of a lonely road overlooking the harbor mouth. But I'll tell ya! It dazzled me this morning, kinda shoved me into my groove. As I continued along on this flat run, I passed another interesting camera-phone-worthy scene. I'm talking about meticulously stacked rocks. There's this guy out here who spends hours stacking these things. People stand about watching him in awe. Here's something I've never told anyone (except my husband) about the whole thing. I get this devilish thought every time I pass the scene to run through the rocks, kicking over the "artwork." But I would never do that; it would probably make someone cry. It's just this uncontrollable urge thing -- hopefully, you know the feeling, else you think I'm a complete jerk.

After running off the island, I turned around at the cliffs, making this a quick run with 3.61 miles gladly logged this morning.

My Turnaround:

Catching a Cool Breeze

Originally I planned for an early morning run, but for the first time in a long time, I slept in. What time is sleeping in? 7 AM. (Oh, where have the days gone when sleeping in meant 10 or 11 o' clock?) I couldn't fit in a morning run waking so late (we had things to do, places to go : ) Plus, another blazing hot day, there wasn't a chance I was gonna run with the sun anywhere in sight. And so I waited.

8 PM, still quite humid, down right hot in the house, I finally set out for a run. The moon was full, or nearly full, big in the sky. It cast a wonderful shimmering column of light across the dark ocean. I was surprised as I ran out to the rock jetty to find the weather still quite hot -- but who am I to judge? I mean, how could it be hot, I mean "really" hot, running along the seaside? Believe me, it was.

Not a leaf stirred in the trees, the ocean was still, its swells measuring in inches. But then as I ran on through the wharf, restaurant lights twinkling across the black waters, sudden marvelous cool breezes hit me head-on. These surprise gusts stayed with me as I ran throughout the marina all the way to the cliffs, where I stood looking down at the waves as they gently rolled in.

Miles logged in the dark: 5.09

# of other runners out there tonight: 3

Nice N' Easy

I've been semi-secretly toying with the idea of running another marathon this October. Shhhhhhh! Don't tell anyone. Like I said, I'm just toying with the idea. In deciding, I set aside one day this weekend for a long solo road run, just to see how it goes : ) And not wanting to push my weekly miles up too quickly, this morning I decided for a nice n' easy run.

I set out LATE, 8:18 AM to be exact. I ran straight down to the coast, hoping for some relief from this heat. What I got was humidity along the still marina waters. But what I also got was giant waves crashing down on the jetty rocks, sending splashes rocketing before spectators at the cliffs. Uneven sets of harsh waves rolled in, one after the other, white water dominating the first fifty yards or so of the ocean. An untamed sea gobbled up the tiny beach there at my turnaround. What an awesome, fierce sight! And I was off again . . .

Careful not to put in very many miles, I plowed up the big hill home. Just once I found my hands on my hips, which I promptly flung away to pick up my pace some back to Highway One. My family used to me being away for hours when I run, my husband laughed when I came through the door. "What'd you run, 100 yards?"

Nope.

Miles logged this morning: 4.32

Number of other runners on the road: 12