6 Mile Start, 3 Mile Finish

I bumped into my running neighbor at the bluegrass jam session last night. He asked if I was up for a run -- just the push I needed. I said that my running had been sparse of late, so a shorter run would be great. Well, we compromised at nearly six miles, about three miles more than I had in mind.

When I woke up this morning, I checked the weather -- a cool 36 degrees fahrenheit. I threw on the tights, laced up the shoes, and shivered over to my neighbor's house. It was 7:00. The sun was just beginning to come up. The moon was still high over the mountain. It felt great to be awake.

When we started out, everything felt great but for my cold hands and the phlegm. We pushed up the Woodgrove hills and then made a left on Williams Gap. Somewhere past the red barn, my right knee started to bother me. A short while later, the pain was clear -- it was my IT band. Damn! We stopped, I stretched, and a few minutes later I had to stop. Running time: 31:00.

If anyone has some good advice about running with a tempermental IT band, I'd love to hear it. I'm really sick of it getting in the way of otherwise good runs. Here's what I do know:

• When I'm in shape, it doesn't bother me.
• When I'm out of shape, it hurts about a half-hour into the run.
• Cold weather makes it worse.
• If I am in shape and it flares up, I know I need new shoes.

Anyway, it was nice to just be out there today, not thinking about work, not being out of town. We walked the rest of the way back, nearly three miles. The best part is work is slowing down just in time for some really cold weather. The next best part is that this year I don't have easy access to a treadmill.

Oh and a belated Happy Thanksgiving to the RBF!