A Little More Conversation

Well my friends are all out of town for the holiday weekend, so I recruited my husband to run with me at Central Park while the High Schoolers had practice. While I so appreciate him going with me, it is just not the same as when the girls run together! I don't know if he is embarrassed to actually run as slowly as I do or if it is just not a good enough workout, but we didn't actually run together and when we were near eachother there was no conversation. Now it's not like I didn't have a good run, the weather was great and my legs felt pretty good so I was trying to keep up with him and not doing too bad. The thing I missed though was the conversation that takes place when the girls run together. I can truly say that we are masters of the running conversation. We have talked, laughed (alot), cried (alot), and basically covered every subject possible while we are running. There are times when I can't talk and just enjoy listening to my friends talk, it really keeps me going. Other times, I can't wait to get to my run to tell a story or share something that happened to me at home or at work, or get their opinion on a problem that is bothering me. I hope you are all having a great time with your families during this holiday, but hurry back, I miss our conversation.

Thankful

I'm thankful for the wonderful community we live in where we can walk out of our door and find any number of trails to run on. I'm thankful for the friends that join me through hot, cold, and windy conditions whenever I want to run. I'm thankful for all the wonderful friends I've made throughout the years while running with my kids. I'm thankful for my family that allow me to drag them out of bed on Thanksgiving morning to run at the SCR's Turkey Trot. Running has been a blessing for me, not only for the obvious health benefits, but mostly for the people it has brought into my life. Happy Thanksgiving!

Timing is Everything

Patty and I couldn't have planned our run more perfectly today. It really didn't look good this morning and it was coming down rather hard when I left the house for our run. I figured we could at least get our coffee. However, by the time I got to Peete's Coffee the rain had slowed and patches of blue sky were visible. We ran toward the Wiley Bridge on the South Fork trail dodging puddles and sliding through mud (true cross country conditions). We forgot about the work they have been doing on the trail so much of it was closed off after Magic Mtn Parkway, forcing us to run under the power lines and in the mud. This detour also caused a glitch with my GPS because we ended up losing signal part of the way. I'm not sure if it was the power lines or the trees, but I have noticed that running under or near power lines tend to upset the Garmin. Anyhow, when I got home and downloaded the map of our run, I noticed that it did not record at least 1/3 of our run (from Wiley to Magic Mt Pkwy). I think we probably did somewhere around 6.5 to 6.75 based upon what it was at the turnaround and what I know of the mileage from Lowes. It's 10 miles from Lowes to the Wiley Bridge Loop and we picked up the trail before the 2 mile mark, so I think that puts us close to 6.5 miles I'm guessing. Anyhow, just as we got close to Pavilions, the rain had just started again. Like I said, timing is everything and we couldn't have planned it more perfectly today!

Gadgets are Good!

I readily admit that I am not much for gadgets, up until recently I couldn't have imagined needing anything other than good running shoes to accompany me on a run. I don't even like to wear a watch, I might glance at it and trip over something (my friends know that this is a true possibility). However since I have been running with a friend who faithfully wears a GPS and I have to say I have come to appreciate the perks that come with it. It is nice to know the exact mileage of a certain route, which comes in handy when we run on trails that can't be measured in my car, also it tells us how fast we are running which is sometimes a pleasant surprise. We have truly come to rely on the GPS when we run and it makes running in a new place so much easier because we know exactly how far we are going. I don't love it enough to want to wear one, but I am happy to reap the benefits of those that love the gadgets. My brother Dave is a true gadget guy (notice I did not say the other "g" word) and he has been exploring walking/running trails all over Santa Clarita, here is the address of his blog where he has detailed info on trails and parks that he has discovered,
http://sirdude.com/musings/

Night Run

We ran in the dark tonight along the hilly paseos of north Valencia. Our pace was slower than what we're usually used to, but like I said it was a hilly 4.15 miles. I think what we're realizing is that we have actually gotten much stronger and the hills are not as bothersome as they once used to be. As we lose our daylight, it also becomes more challenging to find places to safely run. I was extremely happy to get my favorite light clip working again. Thank god for small miracles. As we run, I am very much aware of my surroundings. I think it's from years of running with the youth running clubs that have made me somewhat paranoid, which is a good thing when running at night. All in all it was a good run. I think we're ready for the Beast!

Thanks For the Run

I really want my friends to know that I enjoyed our run today. I enjoyed the cooler weather, I enjoyed
the fact that we were able to put in 6.5 miles quite easily, and I enjoyed the fact that we were going slowly enough that we really got to have a conversation. I know the harder runs are coming, something about "hill training" that I am trying to block out, but for today I am happy. I know that it was my idea to do the longer run, and I think our plans were changed for me. That is what I truly love about my running friends, they pay attention to my moods and sometimes change their plans for me. I hope it was a good run for all, but I just wanted to say thanks!

Running Skirts

At first when I first saw them, I thought "how ridiculous!", but now they're kind of growing on me. Unfortunately by the time I fully accept them as appropriate running attire, I think I will be considered too old to be seen wearing one. You would have to be under a certain age to wear one. They are cute and it really is no different than playing tennis in a skirt, I guess. I just don't know if it would bug me to feel something "swishing" around as I'm trying to run. I have enough things on or in my body "swishing" around that are permanently attached to me. I don't know, what do you gals think? Would you ever be caught wearing one?

Here's a link to the history of running skirts:
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-369-371--12799-0,00.html

Youth

I was at the junior high school cross country race at Central Park today and it got me thinking about how lucky the kids are to have youth on their side. I doubt they experience the same aches and pains we feel in our 40's. The one thing I regret from my youth is that I didn't participate in any organized sports. I wish I had tried out for some sort of team in high school. But then I wonder if I would have appreciated the opportunity as much as I do now that I am older.

Anyhow, it was a nice day at the park to watch the races. It was also nice to see some old familiar faces that we've met throughout the years when our children ran together.

Missing My Running Friends !!

I hope this is going to get posted !! It sounds like I missed a good run tonight ! I really wish my head would allowed my body to run with you. I will have to try and go out on my own which is never as enjoyable ! Kudo's for starting on the hill training, even if they were small to begin with. I do want to try the beast one more time and hope to not let it get me this time. In other words maybe run it smarter ! What do you think ? Well we have time to ponder this before we commit. Hey there is a "Say No To Drugs Race " 5k /10k at Griffith Park on Sunday Dec. 14th maybe we can do this one ? Bye for now. C

Why We Need Hills

Hills... let's face it, we hate them. My running friends and I pretty much plan our runs so we can avoid them at all costs even if it means running farther AROUND the hill rather than over it. We know they're good for us and they'll make us stronger, but it's like a lot of things that are good for us. We dread and avoid them, sort of like taking our vitamins, getting immunizations, or going for the annual OB/GYN check up, if you know what I mean. I have a shirt with a great saying on the back from the COC series, home of the "Killer Hill" and "Aftershock". It says "If it doesn't kill you, it will only make you stronger". So I thought it was time to run some modest hills tonight to start making us stronger and a little faster. It really wasn't all that bad. Mind you, these were not the "Killer Hill" types, more like a hiccup, but we had to start somewhere. If we have any thoughts of running the Beast in a couple of weeks ( yes, a couple of weeks) then we better start some hill training now.

Well if you need further convincing to run for the hills, here is a link:

http://www.active.com/story.cfm?CATEGORY=Running&CHECKSSO=0&STORY_ID=8855