1/18/09

I finally got back outside this morning. I've been itching to run outdoors after only 2 runs inside last week. Granted, the conditions were not ideal, but beggars can't be choosers, right? The temperature was low to mid 20s, which is balmy compared to sub zero, with a bit of a breeze out of the west. We had more snow overnight, a couple inches, to add to the foot or so base that's already on the ground. I was planning to get out early, before too much car traffic hit the roads, but the fresh snow had me reevaluating my intended route. With no traffic, the plan was to stick to the streets where the snow had been removed. With new snow, I was worried about me slip-sliding as well as any cars I might meet. So Plan B evolved. I would hit as many cul-de-sacs and side streets as possible, where I could stay on the street, and trudge through the deep stuff along the busier ones.

I added an extra section of residential streets to my usual route and ran most streets twice, going out and coming back. The run went fine. I did 9.7 miles with light flurries coming down. The street sections went from snowy, to slushy, to wet, allowing me to get enough traction at times to increase my pace to near normal. Otherwise I was running slow. Now the sidewalks were a completely different story. Some people cleared theirs, and some did not. Now that I think about it, MOST did not. I had long sections of high-knee drills getting through the deep stuff, making for one tough run. My time of an hour and a half broke down to 9:19 minute miles. Definitely below average pace, but great to get back outside.