I Run

The hunters were out in force yesterday as I ran up Sweet Pond Rd. With my white shirt, I probably looked a lot like a white tail bobbing through the trees on some of the remote stretches of this route. Nothing like the thought of someone sighting you through a scope to quicken the pace.

Getting out to a race on Thanksgiving morning is not the easiest thing to do. Since we host dinner at our house, there's a lot to be done before the feast. So taking off for an hour or two to at peak preparation time required some advance warning. But we got the turkey in at 7:00, I had my no-knead bread rising by 8:00, and I was out the door 15 minutes later. It was a cool (almost cold) day, and overcast. When I got to Upper Dummerston Rd., I stripped off my sweat pants and went out to warm up for about 20 minutes. The race started at 9:15 with far more runners than I expected. The high school runners (and a few really fast middle-agers) took the lead. I just trudged along at my usual 5K pace, so I guess I'm just as fit as I've been all along. My fingers were pretty cold throughout, so next time I think I'll bring gloves. I came in at 20:18 for the 3 miles, 23 out of around 110 runners. Today I ran an easy 5 or so at recovery pace, and I may try a longer run tomorrow. The weather is just so uncommonly good for this time of the year...

It's strange not to be training. I feel I don't need to run, so sometimes I don't. I think that's OK. I do run at least four times per week, never less than 4 or 5 miles. Today I ran 12.5, very easy. This past week I ran in Keene, which has some very scenic pathways open to only pedestrians and bikers. Unfortunately, when the snow comes those pathways will not be accessible. But for now, I'll take advantage of the beautiful weather we've been having to explore some of them. As for racing, I think the only thing coming up is the annual turkey trot in Brattleboro. I haven't run one of those yet, so I'd like to do it (so long as I can sneak out of the house - it is Thanksgiving morning after all).