Country Run / Heat Training Part 2

To begin, I would like to let it be known that I prefer “psycho” over “crazy.”

Having settled that, Friday I put in 2 hours at the gym in town.  It was delightful, though I couldn’t quite figure out some of the weight machines.  They are all drastically different than my gym’s back home.  The hamstring machine here felt just plain ole’ wrong to me (I’m sure I was using it incorrectly.) 

Saturday morning, I woke with terrible pain in my left knee (after much thought, I believe weight training day prior was the culprit.)  We drove all over town in search of a foam roller.  Even the sporting goods store had no idea what I was talking about, which surprised me, since Stephenville is a college town, and there’s lots of athletes here.  Well, I resorted to a canister of tennis balls and a knee brace.  Wore the brace all day, did all my floor exercises, ab work, then rolled on a tennis ball.  OUCH.  OUCH.  OUCH.  The knee pain almost instantly disappeared. 

I didn’t get out the door for my HEAT TRAINING TAKE 2 today until 7:30 AM, and it was already 85 F (29.4C).  Having filled my pack to the brim with half ice and half water, I carried with me two cold bottles of Gatorade, which after running the front pasture of the Miertschin ranch, set them down before the gate I would exit on my way off the ranch.  Then I commenced to put in a couple miles running the pastures and various trails on my in-laws’ property.  Hard miles.  The ice in my pack seemed to melt right away.

From the front pasture, I ran to my favorite cedar elm grove.  There in the shade stood the burro that our children have named Dunkus.  As soon as I got my camera out, he was gone.

Grasshoppers jumped all about me as I ran into the next pasture.  They mainly crashed into my legs.  But the bigger bizarre creatures, they sometimes smacked into my chest which was needless to say, alarming.  The worst of the grasshopper attack was when one would crash into my palm, and then flutter there for a second against my skin before flying away.

My concern wasn’t grasshoppers so much as rattlesnakes and ticks.  Wasps were a problem too, but I can take them pretty well.  Sure, I don’t want to get stung.  But I’ve been stung by a wasp before, and I can handle it.  Ticks – they just plain ole’ gross me out.  And rattlesnakes, well, I don’t consider them a problem at home, but here where the grass is tall and there is no trail, my fear was a rattler seeing me before I saw him!

Cedar elm grove

Some semi-trail running

Then the grass got to be waist high.  I couldn’t see the ground, which made for a difficult run, unable to see the ruts and rocks and such.  With that heat bearing down, I couldn’t wait to get off the ranch and out onto the country roads.  I noticed vultures flying above as I ran along the scorching-hot fence line.  By the time I made the bone-dry creek bed, I felt relief because of the shade it offered.  But the run was so difficult through this portion and I was growing warmer and warmer, that I began to grow nauseated.  Just calm down, I told myself, take it slowly and get the heck out of this hard stuff.  One foot in front of the other. One foot in front of the other . . .  

Running through tall grass

Creekbed

Finally, after an entire hour of running, I approached the gate to the front pasture.  I picked up my 2 bottles of Gatorade, put one in my backpack.  The other, I opened and began drinking as I ran along the pasture’s front fence line, grasshoppers slapping at my legs.  Even with the scorching heat I couldn’t have been happier to meet the country road, the land of little shade.  Once I hit that country road, a breeze came in.  I felt good.  So far, my body temperature had only fluctuated .5 degrees. 

The remainder of this run (about 9 miles / 14.48 km) was pure scorching heat.  When I’d see a cluster of trees in the distance, I ran toward it with the feeling that I was going to pick me up a pot of gold.  By now my body temperature had increased by one degree.  Drinking and running through the shade, quickly brought it down, but not down to normal, just about .2 to .5 above normal.

I draped the handkerchief over my head, but only wet it down once.  I just couldn’t waste my water after that.  I fought against the urge to conserve fluids and continued drinking little amounts frequently.  Believe it or not, for a good while during this HOT run I was having fun despite the torture.  It felt great to work against the heat AND CONQUER IT.

My feet felt particularly hot.  I felt an urge to tear off my socks.  But what felt hottest were my calves.  It felt like someone was holding torches just inches away from them as I ran.  Running in pants, I actually felt would have been better today. 

I wasn’t exactly sure on my water supply because my pack was heavy with the sports drink and a giant apple.  Ten miles, I told myself, when you reach ten miles, you can have the other Gatorade.  But at 9 1/2 miles, my body temperature had increased 1.5 over normal.  What’s a half a mile?  So I opened up the drink and ran it on in slowly, very slowly to the old cemetery where I could see its shady trees at least a mile away.

One of the few places where I exclaimed, “Shade ahead!”

Posing on bridge over dry riverbed.

I rested in the cemetery, walking about sort of melancholy over the youth buried there.  Then I sat at the age of the Benson Family plot and ate my apple and finished off my sports drink.  While sitting there, I noticed the distinct smell of men’s cologne.  It was faint, but didn’t fade my entire stay.  I thought to myself the following scenarios to explain the cologne: 

1.  A nearby plant smells like men’s cologne.

2.  Someone wearing this cologne had just recently visited the cemetery.

3. Theodore Benson, the patriarch of this family plot who was buried in 1912, had come from beyond to see who was sitting on the edge of his family plot! (No disrespect intended). 

After relishing my apple, I walked up to Theodore’s grave and noticed a handful of change, mainly quarters, some newish, others old and tarnished in a pile on top of his gravestone.  He had also a wife buried next to him who outlived him by twenty-six years.  And they had 3 sons, 1 daughter all living into adulthood (but not old-age), except 1 son who lived only 11 months.. 

Pink Lady, my favorite apple.

Acknowledging one of the many children buried here, Bennett Sageser (7 years old)

My temperature returned to normal, I took off running again for the last 1.75 miles or so.  With very little shade, I was quite fatigued.  My body temperature though remained only about a 1/2 degree higher than normal.  With about .75 of a mile remaining, I ran out of all fluids.  At one point, I abruptly stopped beneath the sun that seemed to be concentrating on only me, and I walked half a dozen steps.  Then I picked it up again, and slowly ran it on in finishing off just under 12 miles (19.31 km). 

The temperature (in the shade) upon my return

Miles run today:  11.75

Elevation Profile:  +935/-969

Heat Training Begins

We did not travel to Texas for heat training.  We came out to visit family.  But just simply standing, or sitting outdoors, I breakout in a sweat it’s so dang hot out here.  When I wake at about 7:00 AM, it’s already over 80 degrees Fahrenheit (27C). By late morning, it’s triple digits until about 8 PM.  Then it’s in the 90’s for the rest of the night.  See.  Perfect for heat training.

I know for many runners that running in 83 degree weather is not much.  But for me, a heat sensitive gal who runs mainly in the coastal hills of California, heat is a big problem.  I never begin a run in 80 plus degree temperatures back home, and one with little shade at that.

I took it nice and easy today, running through the ranch fields first.  Thousands, I mean literally thousands of grasshoppers flew and hopped out of my way as I made through the grass and virtually everywhere else that I ran.  There were little ones, yellow ones, brown and red-striped ones, giant brown ones.  And they’d fly into my legs, sometimes my arms.  And when the big ones hit my hand, I’d have a little “freak-out” moment.  The big grasshoppers were about four inches, the smallest about an inch.  A truly amazing sight.  The only way to avoid the critters was to run directly in the middle of the country roads.  (Which I did not do often)

Heading off the ranch 

I started off slow and ended slow today (slower than usual).  I also carried a thermometer and took my temperature regularly.  Through out the 8 miles, my temperature increased a maximum of 1 degree, but only for a short while.  It mainly increased from .2 to .5 degrees in this heat.  And I was able to quickly bring it back down by drinking fluids.  I also noticed that my temp came down quickly when I ran through shade.  I plan to take my temperature regularly as I train in the heat while I’m here.  I’m not sure what I’ll discover.  Mainly, I just want to be aware of my body and know what if feels like when its overheating so I don’t do a repeat of my little heat exhaustion drop out from Bulldog last year.

Pretty flowers everywhere, even though this part of Texas is in a terrible drought.

The beautiful lonely roads of Texas countryside

One of the large grasshoppers

A quick pose before acres upon acres of fields, no people, no cars, no other sounds except my feet hitting the ground.

A stop at an old cemetery

8.02 miles (12.9 km) run today.  I drank my entire 64 fluid ounces of water and one small bottle of gatorade – this amount of fluids is unheard of for me back home for this distance of a run.  I barely drink this much on a 15 mile run back home.

Back at the ranch, I was giddy that I got in my first heat training run.  Then I crashed hard and fell asleep before heading off to the water park in town. 

Heat

After recently reading Lisa Tamati’s Running Hot I have been inspired to return to the Bulldog 50k this August.  When the heat took me out last August, I thought I’d NEVER attempt the Bulldog 50k again.  Then I got to thinking a couple months ago, perhaps I’d run the 25k.  I’d have all the time in the world to finish. 

Then I went and won Running Hot on Quadrathron.  (Thanks Stuart! )  Lisa Tamati has done amazing runs, including Badwater twice.  I have to say after reading about her “hot” adventures,  I’m “hooked.”  Hooked that is, into trying Bulldog 50k again.  I haven’t told the family yet; not sure what they’ll say.  And to be honest, I haven’t made my final decision. 

Until then, I’ve been researching heat training.  The way I figure this is that I need to get acclimated to running in that kind of heat.  AND, I need to learn how to cool myself down.

Coincidentally, I’ve had a bit of heat training lately, especially today.  I began my run in long sleeves.  And though June Gloom was in the air, humidity was HIGH. 

Aliso Creek Trail

I ran off Wood Canyon onto Dripping Cave Trail (one of my favorites) for a detour to Mathis.  I felt sluggish.  The humidity was really getting to me.  Though I didn’t feel anxious over the run up Mathis, I was beginning to get a little anxious over the heat climbing it.  By mile 2.38, I reached the cave, and the humidity was UNBEARABLE.  I was sure to drink up, and I took those long sleeves off and got the hair also off my neck. 

Knowing that Mathis was going to be a bitch, I took my time playing around on Dripping Cave Trail.  I did not want to panic.  Though during Bulldog’s 50k, heat was my worst enemy, panicking was enemy number 2.

Cooled Off, I traipsed through dry creek bed to pose for the camera, cave is to your right (careful, don’t touch the poison oak!).

One of the lovely summer plants around here, growing on outer cave wall.

What you see when you come out far end of cave.

Getting closer to Mathis, one of my favorite trees, and . . .

I realized that I’ve never climbed it.  So I set my camera to timer and try to make it to branch in time.

Unsteadily on branch, the camera timer clicks again, and then . . .

My Camera plummets off the ledge, across the trail and down the slope.  This is the picture the timer snapped along the way (LOL).

Enough of Dripping Cave Trail, I could no longer deny Mathis.  One foot in front of the other I said to myself while passing the first biker up that mile climb.  She was pretty easy to conquer.  Sweating, she smiled when she finally got off her bike and began walking Mathis.  It took me quite some time to pass the next biker.  I’d say it took me about a third of a mile to finally pass him.  He didn’t smile, but he acknowledged my “hello” with a friendly grunt. 

When I reached Top of the World, I believe that it was a little before noon.  The breeze was cooler up there.  But as soon as I took off down West Ridge toward Cholla, the sun came out.  And it came out in ABUNDANCE.  I was sure getting a dose of what I wanted (well, kinda wanted).

I fought against a bad habit that I have, that is conserving water.  Forcing myself to drink up, because I had plenty of water, I took in a couple gels.  The heat was extreme on Wood Canyon once I ran out of the shade for good.  That’s when I remembered that I had a handkerchief in my pack.  Our friend the O.C. Rock n’ Roll Chef a while ago suggested that I do what chefs do in the kitchen to cool down.  They take that famous handkerchief off their neck, wet it and put it on their head.  That’s just what I did.  At stream crossings I drenched it and draped it over my head.  That did wonders cooling me down, especially when a slight breeze hit.  The only problem was, the handkerchief dried out quicker than I wanted.

When I finally ran to the ranger station, I was pretty dang hot.  I saw at least 3 runners running into the canyon and a biker or 2 all WITHOUT water.  (How do they do it???)  I thought about walking into the ranger station and requesting some cold water.  But I was beat and really had to keep moving to cool down a bit.  I walked around the lot before stretching.  And there parked along the road, were a woman and a man who had just come out of the canyon.  They were drinking ice cold waters and said to me, “You look hot.  Do you want a water?”  I started to say that I didn’t, because that’s what I do.  But when I saw the ice chest in the back of their truck I said, “Why yes, thank you so much, I do!”

That cold water was delightful!

12 miles (19.31 km) run today:

+1,582/-1,580