Autumn PLEASE Move Your Arse

Tuesday

Dear Autumn:

Could you please, please, please move a little quicker and get here. 

Sincerely,

LaurenOnTheRun

Out-and-back to Top of the World in Laguna Beach in dang hot weather.  6.67 miles run, 1,168’ elevation gained.

Some Thoughts . . .

Some thoughts that went through my mind as I ran Friday's 10.3 mile loop beneath the hot summer sun:

1. All I have to do is make it up Mentally Sensitive, and then it's almost over (6.5 miles to go!)
2. The whole loop is only ten miles, that's really just two five miles, and half of five miles is only 2.5 miles. I can run 2.5 miles!!
3. Ahhh look at those lovely (poisonous flowers).
4. It’s perfectly fine to HIKE Mentally Sensitive.
5. Buck Up!
6. Are those my tracks?
7. Deer tracks!
8. Deer scat!  Why always berries in deer scat?
9. Poor dead beautiful blue lizard.
10. Buck Up!
11. An hour has already passed?
12. Can. Not. Wait. Until. I. Reach. The. Top.
    
13. Love, love, love the view.
14. Don’t look at the top.  Do. Not. Look.
15. One step in front of the other.
16. Buck Up!
17. Lovely, lovely shade.
18. Just one more hill and it’s all down hill from there. 
19. Just 3 more miles.
20. Just 2.5 more miles.
21. Just 2.25 more miles
22. Just 2.0 more miles.
23. Just 1.75 more miles
24. Just 1.50 more miles
25. Just 1.25 more miles
26. Just 1.0 more miles
27. Just .75 more miles
28. Just .50 more miles
29. Just .25 more miles
30. Awesome.  That wasn’t so bad now, wasn’t it?  I think I’m better for it!

Wood Canyon

My three sons went back to school today.  This made me sad.  They don’t get seemingly endless summer vacations like I did when I was a child.  I used to grow so bored during summer vacation that I was begging to get back to school.  This is not so for my sons.  Summer breaks have shortened by at least a month.  Though we are ready for them to return to school (believe me, VERY ready), they are not.  And I already miss them.  

So, I took my sadness on this overcast day and ran through a lonely Wood Canyon – 7.07 miles, and as usual, was better for it.  Not much to report except for these tranquil scenes:

Road Training

Waiting patiently for the season to change. Waiting patiently for something to give, for some kind of routine . . . until then, I’ll get my runs in when I can, dare I write it, WHERE I can.  Yes, today, I saved on gasoline and time, and ran out the front door for a quick road run totaling 5.6 miles.  

Running above traffic to the beaches:

I warmed up quickly with my usual late start.  And quite different from my usual trail runs, I was in the company of lots of other runners.  As I am getting ready for school to start, as well as, interviewing for jobs, I may be hitting the road a few more times as I head up toward the Spartan Beast where I am sure to die an epic death (figuratively speaking).

Hoping to hit the trails soon.  Until then, I think I can take these beach scenes for a little bit longer. 

If you are moved to donate to The Semper Fi Fund, you can do so using this link for my Support Through Sport page.

One More Run For August

Saturday, I had planned . . . oh heck, forget what I planned.  This is what I did.  I set out at 2:30 in the afternoon for a ridge run in the coastal hills.  I didn’t begin on the ridge; I began in Wood Canon and made a quick, steep climb to the ridge.  It was HOT, like the devil.  But it was beautiful and oddly refreshing.  I didn’t see a single other runner out there, or hiker for that matter.  But I did see plenty of mountain bikers – a friendly bunch.   

I ran along the ridge, with ocean views, to Top of the World in Laguna Beach.  Total run: 6.5+ miles with a nice, semi-mellow climb.

ps.  Happy birthday Jeremy!  Wishing you the best on your Disney runs.

But it’s Flat

Well, August has not been a total bust, but near so!  My excuse:  the heat.  Yes, this summer has not been nearly has hot as the previous three summers.  Still, I have not enjoyed running in the heat this year.  Not one bit.  Though my miles are much under goal, my cross-training is not terrible (the gym is air-conditioned).  Despite the heat, I did manage to get out on Arroyo Trabuco trail yesterday, at ten o’clock in the morning.   As I headed out the door, my hubby responded that I was choosing the hottest trail, to which I responded, “But it’s flat.”  To the trail runner, Arroyo Trabuco is flat.  To me it is flat.  When I was a road runner running mostly flat streets however, I would have never considered Arroyo Trabuco “flat.”  Here is an elevation profile of yesterday’s “flat” run:

This out-and-back, which begins on Antonio Parkway with access down to Tijeras Creek trail, travels Arroyo Trabuco for six miles, ending at the trailhead in O’Neill Park.   This trip is clearly suburban trail running, with plenty of homes overlooking the trail, giant overpasses to run beneath, and occasional views of trucks and cars from the roads above.  Much of the trail however, is covered with thick vegetation, blocking suburbia from view.  It really feels like I’m out in remote wilderness much of the time (aside from the automobile noise). 

I divide this 12 mile run into three legs (three times two, as it is an out-and-back).  There’s the “lowlands” (shady and lush), the “highlands” (hot and exposed) and then “lowlands” again (both hot/exposed and shady/lush).  My favorite portion is the first “lowlands.”  It is the coolest.

The “lowlands” #1:  Begins on Tijeras Creek Trail which crosses a small creek and runs up into Arroyo Trabuco:

What I call “The Jungle,” because my friend Tom Fangrow called it that:

I do not really look forward to leg#2, the “highlands.”  On a winter day however, it would be just fine (much cooler!). 

Entering “the highlands” on this “flat” trail: 

Some history on this portion:

Trying to figure out how to strike a pose:

I felt great relief reaching “lowlands” #2.  Views of The Saddleback Mountains came into view and shade lay in places ahead.  To top it off, water fountains and restrooms awaited me in the neatly manicured O’Neill park. 

Entering leg #3, the second “lowlands”:

Turnaround point in O’Neill Park, time to turn around and run back, but not before watering down: