a barrel of this

I decided it was time to pick up some gloves and a hat since the weather is turning cold. I ran to the Fleet Feet in Adams Morgan. I picked up some nifty gloves that can convert from gloves into mittens and a hat with zippered pocket. I didn’t need them today as the weather was oddly warm but, cold days are ahead. I’ll review the gloves and hat on an equipment page I’ve been promising to write for eons.

There are some lost miles here. It took 4 miles to get there so, call me crazy but, I suspect it took 4 miles to return.

Today I ran with my camera in Rock Creek Park so I could document my typical running environment. It also makes me slow down, look around, and pay more attention to my surroundings. I took a route up to Maryland today over the boundary bridge. I was looking for a recently re-opened train/pedestrian bridge but, I didn’t study my map hard enough. I think it was another few miles north so I’ll tackle that another day.

The full set is available on Flickr.

Conditions were less than desirable today but, at least the GPS got something closer to my actual mileage. A big storm came through that was due on Thanksgiving but decided to show up to the table a day early. It was also down in the 40s so I got into winter garb for the first time this season. It wasn’t raining hard when I left the house so I stupidly left my waterproof jacket at home and opted for a warmer, water resistant jacket. Dumb. I was drenched within the first two miles.

Weather aside it was a pleasant run. I downloaded the Nike+ run from LCD Soundsystem (James Murphy) that was released on iTunes to coincide with the release of the Nike + iPod package. The music is what you would expect from LCD SS: sprawling “dance” music. It’s actually has more vocal material than I was expecting but, that is in keeping with their sound. Apparently, the band enjoyed running on tour and this mix was created to emphasize the components of their music that they most enjoyed listening to while running. Like most things on DFA it features a post-modern interpretation of “dance” music that incorporates big, funky beats and krautrock escapades.

The mix clocks in at 45:33 (the RPM of short and full length vinyl records). I don’t know how many repeated listens this will get but it was worth the cash to hear it. It would be interesting to hear mixes of various lengths from this artist or others. It would also be cool if someone released the session files so one could cook up their own mix in a digital audio workstation. Mr. Murphy’s asserts in the companion digital booklet that fast tracks were too close to running pace and interfered with their natural pace. I’ve had a different experience with the copious amount of techno that I bring along on runs. I’ve found that most of the minimal techno I own (a good deal of it at 133 bpm, God’s bpm according to Joey Beltram - I may be be attributing this quote to the wrong DJ but reference the film “Modulations” for the details) is swift enough to pick me up but not fast enough to become distracting to my rhythm.

I do agree with the notion that runner’s need a push and pull from their running soundtrack. A balance of propulsive tracks and more relaxing music is helpful. Just having one tempo or one genre of music can be too mind numbing. Lyrics are distracting in a good way on longer runs so I try to mix the techno with a few other styles. Perhaps I’ll start working on a playlist and publish it here.

I tried a different part of Rock Creek today. More problems with lost mileage. This felt more like a 6 mile run and at 51 minutes I’m certain it was a lot longer than the 4.2 miles the GPS recorded. Today’s run was along the Valley trail which runs up the east side of the park. I started at Carter Baron and made my way north towards Maryland. Parts of this trail were quite challenging and it seems like a good route. I also ran into more runners than usual along this route. Eventually I’m going to try to combine this route with a road route that starts and ends at my front door.

I started off with some speed work today in the rain and then switched it over to a tempo run. Tempo runs are hard for me because I feel like I always run at tempo. Therefore it makes it difficult to find the right heightened pace to push without burning out too quickly. I felt some nausea around mile 3. I’ve been having more of that. I think my DC living is not nearly as “clean” as my CA living was. An alteration in behavior is likely given that the lack of daylight will mean running more often in the mornings.

A tornado watch was in effect after my run so I’m glad I got it in early today.

I was just singing the praises of the Garmin Forerunner last week but today, it did me no good at all. First off it is missing several miles of distance that I’m sure I ran. It only managed to gather four positions over the entire run. Secondly, I got lost and tried to use it to get back to a trail and since it didn’t have sync with the satellite at the start it pointed me in the wrong direction. Luckily, I ignored it.

Rock Creek Park is huge. At one point I thought I had wondered up into Maryland. I wasn’t lost so much as disoriented. Unfortunately, it is getting dark very early here so even starting at 4:30PM doesn’t leave much daylight. Running in the near dark on trails is no picnic. I might experiment with a head lamp.

Long run through the park today. Still trying to figure out a route that I can turn into a regular loop. This was farther than I wanted to go today but, it was a balmy 70 degrees out and the first trail running I’ve done in over a month. The new shoes did reasonably well on the trail despite not being specifically “trail running” shoes. I did hit one rock on a descent right on my sore right foot but otherwise alright. I tried very hard not to focus on the nagging little things and it felt good to be outside in the nice weather running.

Sitting out the month of October was horrible. The weather here was beautiful, everyone was out running getting in their last miles before the various marathons happening up and down the east coast. All of this was a constant reminder that last year at this time I was running my first marathon. In the year since I’ve not been able to do any significant amount of running. So today I started back on the training for real. In the last year I’ve come to realize that if I stretch and train properly and generally take care of myself then I can live with my various injuries. Less trips to the doctor and more trips to the trails.

To that end I picked up a new pair of running shoes last Saturday. My chiropractor reminded me that perhaps it was time for a new pair. My Asics Kayanos are a year old and while they didn’t see much milage it seemed like a fine time to update (like I needed an excuse to buy new gear). The fine folks at Fleet Feet Sports helped me pick out a new pair of Asics, the Gel Evolution II. He seemed to believed that I am a serious over-pronator which was news to me. I had thought I was neutral to mild. I should have worn my previous running shoes in to the store to prove my side of the story. But, he did have me stand in socked feet in the store and walk so he could check my gait and was convinced that his prognosis was accurate. So, I tried them on and ran up and down the block for a while. I have to say they did feel comfortable and I noticed that each foot fall was a bit more solid.

Today they got nice and dirty in the mud of the park today. Time will tell how they hold up in the long run.

Back at it today after a month long hiatus. I’ve been nursing my foot back to health though honestly it is not much better than it was a month ago. I’ve been seeing a chiropractor who took some MRIs of my back and foot. Both turned out free and clear but there is some scar tissue in both cases. Unfortunately, that scar tissue is being painfully removed with a scraping tool and dunking my foot in very cold water each day. Not fun. This method was developed by a water skier who tore his knee up badly in an accident. It has been helping slightly but, it is not terribly pleasant.

I finished 90th overall out of 656 runners, 79th out of 382 male runners. Not great but, I’ve never raced a 10k before. I had a bit left over at the end which tells me that I probably could have kept up a slightly faster pace throughout. The race was technically 6.2 miles but according to my forerunner it was a bit longer. Also, I didn’t get a chip for timing so I started my watch when I crossed the start and finish line. My official time was 45:53, about a 7:22 pace, so I guess they just timed everyone from the start gun. Unfortunately, I was a bit back in the back. My pal Space shot through the throng of runners towards the front. I just couldn’t quite keep track of him before we hit the paved path and darkness. It was fun running under the moon. I kept thinking that I saw Space and that I might catch him but, the next time I saw him was on the wrong end of the turn around and he was well ahead. He ended up finished 51st overall, about 2:30 ahead of me.

I definitely want to run this distance again. Probably racing in the day time when one can see a bit better might help. Though honestly I was pleasantly surprised that neither my awkward glasses, which I forgot to take off, nor the darkness interfered with having fun. California really does have fantastic races. The turnout was fantastic and the race raises a bunch of money for local charities.

Being back was rough. I already miss California a great deal. On Saturday morning after the race I drove up 280 to San Francisco for my eye doctor appointment. If you are visiting the bay area and you have the choice to drive on either 101 or 280, take 280. It has to be one of the most scenic highways in the entire United States. It used to be my daily commute but, even when I was groaning about the traffic I had an inkling that I was quite lucky. Now I’m sure of it.