It’s just a matter now of putting the pieces together

Last night I pressed and rolled my foot down on a tennis ball as hard as I could.  No pain.  After icing, heating, rolling etc., FINALLY no pain.  I continued rolling through the night, even taped to go to sleep. 

This morning I felt REALLY optimistic about a trail run.  Then after dropping the last of my boys at school, he informed me that he forgot his clarinet. I drove all the way back home, grabbed his instrument, then rushed back to his school.  Then I RAN through campus to get the clarinet into the music room before the tardy bell rang.  I made it.  The bad news is, upon my first running step, my right foot hurt.  IT.  HURT.

Darn it.  I went for a trail run anyway.  And I’m especially glad because today I finally put together the last piece of my puzzle for the Tides to Towers run that I’m eventually going to do. (That is a run from the beach up to Santiago Peak, AKA Talking Towers Peak)  I’ve finally “punched” through Arroyo Trabuco and ran to the mouth of Trabuco Canyon.  I even had some spare time after that and ran up Rose Canyon because I heard a runner can get to Santiago Truck Trail from there.  If this is true, it will open up a whole new array of running for me.  Anyway.  First things first.  I’ve got the Tides to Towers route.  Put together, it’s 29 miles one way.  I still haven’t decided about the return trip, whether I’m going for the full 58 mile round trip.  I’m toying of taking the bus when I get off the mountain or having hubby pick me up.

I’m aiming to do this “Tides to Towers” run late winter, early spring.  Now, my job is to find one or more trail runners to do this with me.  Any takers?

Running Arroyo Trabuco:

Running through O’Neill campground with drinking fountains galore and sparkling bathrooms with running water sinks and flushable toilets!!:

Standing at the mouth of Trabuco Canyon:

Rose Canyon:

Time to turn around in Rose Canyon and head back.  The foot was aching by this point.  Bummer.  But it was still a good run, because any run is better than no run, especially in this pristine scenery.  (Today’s total: ten miles)

Tired of Giving it a Rest

About the only cardio my foot can handle is the gym bike.  Tuesday I rode 30 miles.  I just couldn’t stand to sit any longer.  Slowly, very slowly, the pain is lessening in my right foot.  Pain hits worst in the morning.  And also after sitting.  You can imagine how I limped away from the gym bike after 30 miles. 

Yesterday, pain was at its lowest point in a long time.  Ice, heating, anti-inflammatory medicine and rolling did some good after all.  And dang it!  I was tired of giving my foot a rest.  I mean REALLY.  Just how long can I stay away from the trails?

I did make some concessions today – firstly, I chose a “flat” trails.  I drove to Las Flores, parked at a tennis park and ran down to Tijeras Creek.  From there I made my way to Arroyo Trabuco Trail.  This is the “flat trail.”   In 10.04 miles that I ran, I climbed more than 2,000 feet.  So much for flat!  No really, it was fairly flat.  What made the largish gain was the constant low grade climb for 5 miles.  Thus, my second concession.  When I reached 5 miles, pain was minimal and I wanted to run further.  But I forced myself to turnaround, just in case. I even hesitated, turned around again and moved further onward just to realize I was behaving like a child.  I NEEDED to turn around and head back.  

I should also note that the reason I returned to Arroyo Trabuco (beside it’s “flatness”) is that I’m still attempting to “punch through” to Trabuco Canyon so I can finish mapping out my “Tides to Towers” run.  (Tides to Towers – a run from my house, the beach “tides,” up to Santiago Peak, aka. Talking Towers). 

Tijeras Creek Trail Head (one of the many Tijeras Creek trailheads):

Tijeras Creek Trail:

I fell into the creek on my first crossing!

Arroyo Trabuco Trail:

Turnaround time:

Pain was very bearable when I arrived back at the truck.  Then I sat behind the wheel for about twenty minutes.  When I arrived home, I limped to the door.  Only now, at this late hour, does my foot feel some relief.  I’ve iced.  I’ve rolled.  And right now, it is nicely wrapped.   Definitely hoping that I continue to heal, and that my impromptu run today didn’t worsen my plantar fasciitis. 

Happy Trails!!!

Update: Another Reason To Hate The Dreadmill

Super busy weekend, Saturday I didn’t have time for my long run.  Instead, I spent three hours at the gym.  I got lots of work done – weights, abs, elliptical crossramp, and the treadmill.  Wait.  Did I say treadmill?  I meant Dreadmill.

This is a dreadmill – notice my gear, not on my back.  There’s a towel on the left (to soak up the sweat from my face, because who wears a hat on the dreadmill?), water bottle and hair-tie on the right, and a Trader Joe’s bag on the floor with keys and other stuff like chapstick, a high school newsletter, and pen and paper:

For some reason, I find running excruciatingly difficult on the dreadmill.  I sweat more, the scenery is blah, and time passes slower than a snail moves.  Time moved so, so, slowly on Saturday, I put in my earbuds and forbade myself from looking at the stats until a song finished.  I played little games like increasing the pace at times, and not allowing myself to decrease it until an entire song played. 

This “adventure” really was hellish.  All 5 miles of it.  And before I even hit mile one, another dreadmiller came up and got on the machine next to me.  There were about 15 empty dreadmills that he could have occupied without having someone on either side.  I’m just not used to running so closely, side by side with someone for 5 miles. 

Don’t get me wrong.  I appreciate the dreadmill and what it offers (runs on terrible weather days, or when you can only fit in a run at 3AM).  My brother in fact, can only run dreadmills nowadays – it’s all his schedule allows.  At best, I appreciate the dreadmill because I can force myself to run faster. 

I don’t know. Maybe if I was a serious athlete, I’d appreciate this piece of machinery more.  I ask you, after peering off a mountain edge for several miles, how am I to appreciate a view like this:

Okay, it’s not a terrible view.  But there’s no clouds, no stinkbugs, birds nor bunnies.  Regardless, all of this complaining would really be moot, and I’d find myself back on the dreadmill probably someday soon, if it wasn’t for one thing.  The most important thing.  When I got home, my plantar fasciitis flared up worse than it ever has.  I endured great foot pain for two days, barely able to walk.  Ibuprofen did absolutely nothing to ease the pain.  Taping in fact did very little to ease the pain.  Numbing my foot with ice was about the only thing that worked.  The pain actually kept me awake at night.  That first night, in fact, I sweated all night long (like I had a fever).

I took Sunday and Monday off from any kind of cardio work, especially running.    I’ve been rolling, icing, heating and stretching.  I’ve gone through so much tape that I have permanent tape marks on the bottom of my foot.  Maybe it wasn’t the dreadmill.  But it seems just too coincidental to me.  (Sorry treadmill enthusiasts). 

Doing Time

Today, I did my time on the trails.  Wasn’t really in the mood.  Didn’t even have that much available time.  I neglected the laundry, dishes, vacuuming however, so I could get out there.  In the process of increasing my weekly mileage, some runs it’s just about the doing time.

I ran past the “Old Corral.”  This was a working corral when when this property was part of a gigantic ranch that the Moulton family owned. 

After 4.5 miles, I ran up out of Wood Canyon, via Cholla Trail.  I struggled a little with the climb, but took opportunity to STOP and take a picture looking back into the canyon.

At mile 7.5, I reached Top of the World, stopped for a quick self-portrait.

At about mile 9, I finally reached the top of Meadows Trail.  Nice and sweaty, I was ready for that windy switch-back trail.

I joyfully ran down Meadows, following some mountain bikers who quickly left me in the dust. 

A mile later, I was running the flat portion of Meadows back into Wood Canyon to close up the loop.

12.20 miles run doing time.

Crazy Crawdads

This morning the skies were gray, the air wet, the breeze cool.  I climbed the steepest trail (Mentally Sensitive) and it did a great job of clearing my mind.

Happy to overcome Mentally Sensitive:

I found a new trail behind the park at The Top of the World.  Of course, I HAD TO investigate.  It was a short trail, .15 of a mile, with vast views and wooden tables with three bench seats each, placed periodically along the edge. 

Newfound Trail:

When I ran down Mathis Trail on my way back into Wood Canyon, I stopped by the creek for a look at my crawdad friends.  Surprisingly, I didn’t see any in the pool.  Simply standing there, I focused on my surroundings, for no particular reason.  I wasn’t tired.  I wasn’t thinking.  I was just taking in my world when I noticed the crawdads.  They were climbing up the rocks, in the algae and rushing water.  Crazy crawdads!  I have no idea what they were doing.  Lots of guesses, but I haven’t Googled it yet. 

The Stream Crossing at the bottom of Mathis Trail:

Crawdads struggling against the current:

Then I ran into Wood Canyon for a cool relaxing run back to the truck.  I passed a blue heron on the way.  He stood like a statue as I ran by rather closely.  In all I covered 11.12 miles, happily.

Wood Canyon, going home:

The Twin Peaks That Was Not

Saturday (yesterday) was the day Twin Peaks was supposed to run, but was cancelled due to the government shutdown.  The race director went down to the start line at 7:00 AM to hand out the medals and shirts for anyone who wanted to claim them.  Most of the 25 who showed ran a “Fat Ass 50k” for the fun of it.   (Fat Ass:  a term used for an unmarked, unsupported, unofficial race).  I elected to run an out-and-back to Santiago Peak.  Another runner I met elected for a shorter route than my 22 miles.  Several runners (at least 6) took a ride down off the mountain at some point  (the trails are that tough!). 

Since I had all the time in the world, I took this run with no intentions on pushing myself speed-wise.  Simply running these mountain trails would be pushing myself hard enough.

At the start, I met a group of guys who said they watched my 2012 Twin Peaks video the night before.  I saw some people I knew of, but did not know.  I saw some good running friends too.

Me and Emmett (& John in background):

I’ll try and cut it short.  I ran eleven miles uphill, turned around and ran eleven miles back down. 

Well, that’s a bit too short of a story for my taste.  First off, it was cold.  I drove to the other side of the mountain, the Riverside side, which is much colder than the coastal side.  So, I ran up the nearly seven mile Indian Truck Trail with long sleeves and a cool breeze to my face.  The run was not technical, but it was hard.  And it was lovely.

Running up Indian Truck Trail:

From Indian Truck Trail, I considered turning around and making this a 14 mile run.  But I forced myself onward and I took The Main Divide for that brutal run to Santiago Peak. 

I met this amazing runner along the way:

And this amazing runner too (Scott) – both of these 50k runners passed me on the way to the peak:

Almost there:

Santiago Peak within sight!:

Arrived (Now time to turnaround and run back):

Before summiting, my sock lifted a piece of tape from my foot.  The loosened piece began sawing away at my foot.  It felt like tiny chainsaw moved back and forth along the side of my arch with each step.  I debated whether I should stop and re-tape.  I’m getting a little smarter and decided “better safe than sorry.”  So, I rested at the Upper Holy Jim water stop Jessica (the RD) had provided, and untapped my foot to find a raw slice in my foot.  I re-taped and took off with a much stronger foot. 

Unfortunately, the stronger foot lasted only about an hour.  By the time I made Indian Truck Trail again my right foot felt like it was going to fall off.  But I was now on the LONGEST TRAIL IN THE WORLD!  And I was a little eager to end this adventure.  Concentrating on picking my feet up quicker, I felt content with a 13 minute mile (And that’s downhill!).  That’s all the pain I could take.  If I ran all out, I’d put myself through pain for no reason.  This was a fun run.  Not a race.  Arriving intact was more important than finishing 15 to 30 minutes faster.   

Upper Holy Jim:

In all, the day I was registered to run Twin Peaks, I ran 22 miles.  The day was gorgeous, the weather perfect.  I had plenty of fun, but boy!  The run wiped me out.  I think I could have finished Twin Peaks, but never with a 7AM start.  I would have taken the 4:30 early start, as I will do next year, if I am so fortunate to have another chance at Twin Peaks.

I got my shirt, and I got my medal.  Though the medal was merely given to me, I’m going to consider all those times I dragged myself up that hellish climb to the peak as earning this medal.