In Defense of Running

Recently, probably because of experiences like the "slush run," Erica and I questioned the sanity of our decision to run more. She finally convinced me to write up a defense of running for her blog. It can be found here.

Slush Run

I've been running this winter through the wet and cold and limited daylight of New England. I felt like a hardcore adventure athlete who laughed at the elements and couldn't be held back by things like snow drifts, frigid air temperatures, and patches of ice...for about thirty seconds. Now I just experience the familiar realization that I had no idea how awesome I had it growing up in California. Running here in the winter sucks. It takes forever to put all the layers on, find my gloves (running in gloves?!), and figure out whether or not I should strap on the yak tracks. During the run, parts of you are freezing while other parts roast, your lungs hurt from the freezing air, you constantly have to worry about hitting an ice patch and breaking your neck, and a snot slurry covers your face, sleeves, and gloves. The amount of lung pain even post-run cannot be healthy.

So, I've been spending quite a bit of time at the gym on a treadmill. 

Earlier this week, though, temperatures approached the upper thirties, the sun was out, and I really wanted to avoid going treadmill (similar to postal) on the people at the gym so I decided to run over to the local track. Miserable. And of course not a bit of the track was visible through the slush. Oops.

Slushy. It was worse where traffic forced you to run on the "sidewalk."

I had to turn off the watch and trail blaze a few times, and I ended up doing a few laps around a big parking lot which was wonderfully plowed compared to the roads.

Back to the treadmill for a while.

Skiing...

...the most fun way to beat yourself up:


Yes. That is the size of a softball. I won't show you the ones on my hips because it's a little inappro-pro.

In all seriousness, I love skiing, and it was an awesome way to get in my 1.1111...and then some. But I am not yet good enough to avoid falling. Luckily, I am lacking the gene that makes me fear falling. Unluckily, I still feel like I've been hit by a truck...

Skiing 1.1111 Miles

Erica and I decided to do our 1.1111 on the slopes of Mt. Wachusett, since we happened to be skiing there today. The longest run on the mountain turned out to be .97 miles, so I had to stop the watch at the bottom, get back on the chairlift, and tack on the final .1311 of a mile.

The total time turned out to be 3:40. I have no idea if that's good or not, but I'm pretty sure it's faster than I could have run it. Here's a very low budget video I made of the course the next time I went down. Given that the phone camera was in my right hand, poles were in my left, and that I'm not the most technically awesome skier, it's not too surprising how shaky it is. I do apologize, though, if it makes anybody a bit queasy. You can see Erica demonstrating much better form than mine at about 2:20.

FAT Newkirk's 1.1111

Tomorrow is November 11, 2011 (1/11/11), which is also the date of FAT Newkirk's first official unofficial race. If you feel like competing, go ahead and run 1.1111 miles (that's 4.47 laps around the track) on whatever course strikes your fancy. It would be cool to hear everyone's personal race highlights. Of all of the races that are longer than one mile, 1.1111 miles just happens to be my favorite distance.

If you're in the Azusa area, here's a nice sample route: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=4226861. 

Exploring

Ran around for a bit checking out the other side of the highway:

Conditions were less than ideal on the golf course:

Inspirational

Kristina demonstrates another of her many and multifaceted talents. Not only is she adventurous herself, she inspires others to get out there for themselves. 

Awesome New Blog

I just stumbled across a great new blog called Real Healthy. It breaks down the latest research in health and nutrition with articulate insight and playful wit. Highly recommended!   

Variety

I noticed that someone was committed enough to snow shovel one of the lanes at the local track:

It turned out to be very exciting:

At least Erica thought so.

One of those "glad I remembered the headphones" kind of runs.

First Run of the Year!

6 very icy, slushy, and wet miles.

Anybody else burning off the holiday pudge? Only three weeks till the FAT Newkirks 5K.