30 Minutes--Around Town

My dog bolted out of the front door with me tonight, not content to stay behind. She needed the exercise, and so did I. She started out too fast again, as usual, but she was able to hang in there. For once, I actually had the upper hand in the last five minutes and I tried to show her the error of her ways.

It didn't work. She caught a second wind and pulled me the last 100 yards home.

15 Mile Hike--C&O Canal Towpath

Enjoying a second day off from work, I decided to revisit the location where my brother and I dropped out of the C&O Canal 100k hike at White's Ferry. I picked up where we left off and hiked northbound on the towpath.

For miles and miles before White's Ferry, the trail was overgrown in parts, with only tire ruts to walk over. With the wet weather we encountered in spring, this all but guaranteed soaked feet. Just past White's Ferry, though, the path was much more friendly--flat, even footing with a much better view. Granted I was hiking later in the year after the tree's lost their leaves.

I kept a very quick pace, trying to simulate what the 100k hike requires (and then some). I noticed that the mile markers are pretty inconsistent--some are way too far apart and some are way too close together--which would have been nice to know when I was actually hiking the event. There's something psychologically defeating about knowing you are at a 15-minute mile pace, but you just clocked in a hair over 20.

Anyway, I think I have the bug now to succeed where I failed. I'll definitely be giving the 100k hike another try this year.

13 Mile Hike--Harper's Ferry

I parked my car just at the WVA/VA border on Route 9 and picked up the Appalachian Trail northbound to Harper's Ferry, about 6.5 miles away. I was out for a fast hike to the home of John Brown's standoff, grab some lunch, and see the sites before the hike back. Unfortunately, the weather turned cold and rainy on the way there, so I scaled back my sightseeing after lunch (not wanting to get soaked to the bone). I did bring rain gear, breathable at that, but you still sweat when the gear is a little on the warm side for the weather. I huffed it back and enjoyed the relative warmth and dryness of my car. All in all, I spent a little under 3 hours.

30 Minutes: Scotland Heights

I couldn't believe how warm it was this morning, so I laced up to find out exactly how hot it really was. The recent hiking gave my legs a really solid feeling that allowed me to cover much more ground than usual.

11 Mile Hike

I decided I simply had to get in more hiking, this time a roughly 11 mile hike in three hours starting at Bear's Den and working south along the Appalachian Trail to just past Tomblin Hill. I also counted some side trails I explored.

12 Mile Hike, 2 Mile Run

Taking full advantage of the weather I spent the entire day outside. I put in three hours on the trail, covering a blistering 12 miles. Afterwards, I tacked on a 2 mile run. Then I reflected on how sore I was.

12 Mile Hike, 2.5 Mile Run

The title says it all.

Running Poetry

"Escape By Running" by Laura Muhawesh

Today I will run as far as I can and I will not stop until I am spent. I will run from my fears, and run from the pain.

Today, I will run and I will run without gain. I will run, today, with a power to live. I will run with my love and my pride and my hate.

I will run today and no one will know that I am running away and no one said “go.”

When I run today, I will not think, my mind and thoughts will my legs overtake.

My muscles will pump and the blood will flow through, my joints will ache and my body will drain. But through all of this I will keep running, because when I run, to the road I’ve submit.

My mind will be gone in its own quite place, and no noise will I hear nor smile will I fake.

Today I will run as strong as I can and today I will run with no finish line.

30 Minutes: W&OD Trail (Herndon)

I had enough time to take an full lunch break today and spent a good part of it on the W&OD trail, starting at the old train station in old town Herndon. The skies were overcast and the air was warm and I started out way too fast (roughly 8 minute pace). I slowed down to finish 3.5 miles in a half-hour. Since I ran out much further than I came back, I walked another half-mile back to my car. Damn it felt good.

Running Safely in the Dark

With the end of Daylight Saving Time, runner's are suddenly in the dark. Abby Haight reflects on how to run safely when the sun don't shine.

30 Minutes: Around Town

I didn't plan on running today, but after a car ride with my wife and dog to see the autumn leaves, I simply couldn't resist. I kept this run short and sweet. My body still feels really good, but I've taken a huge upswing in my running over the last week or so and I don't want to overdo it and hurt myself--which is what I normally do.

Tergat Wins NYC in Near Photo Finish

Paul Tergat edged out Hendrik Ramaala AT THE TAPE to win the NYC Marathon in 2:09:30 (4:57 pace). Unbelievable. Wish I was there to see it.

1 Hour: Mountain Road

I continued my quest to take advantage of the final days of beautiful weather. Today, I found a road I'd never run, or driven before--Mountain Road--aptly named as it snakes along the base of the Appalachian Mountains, but still inside the Loudoun Valley, which gave it ever so slightly rolling hills. The mountains are in peak fall colors right now, which made the run all the better (if only I had my camera!). Next time, I think I'll take the road northbound toward the Potomac River.

Fall Running

Scott Bernard Nelson has the right idea.

It's a transcendent moment that's a little easier to reach this time of the year. The nights get longer as fall fades to winter, which means I can sleep in and still beat the sunrise. And call me crazy, but those mornings in the dark provide a certain level of satisfaction and relaxation I just can't get in the middle of the day.

I get to glide through islands of light and shadow in somnolent suburbia. The primary sounds, for long stretches of time, come from my breathing and the soles of my shoes. Gatorade sloshes faintly in the bottle at my waist, and I check occasionally to make sure the little red light on my backside still blinks its warning to other nocturnal creatures.

30 Minutes: Near Office

I went for another twilight run after work before heading home. The weather is still amazing. My legs felt a little sore at the start, largely because I've strung together a few straight days of running, so I eased into the run, peaked only for a few minutes, and eased back down. Most of the run was very slow. It still felt great.

Runner's World Podcast

Runner's World started its first podcast recently with its the initial focus on the NYC Marathon this weekend. They already have three episodes recorded:

Episode 1: The New York Experience
Episode 2: Your first NY Marathon, nutrition, gear and more
Episode 3: Surviving the start, staying motivated and running for life

Runner's World editor David Willey explains:

In our pages, Runner's World has always delivered expert advice on training for, and running in, the marathon. But now you can take our editors' expertise with you by downloading it onto your MP3 player. Then you can listen to it wherever and whenever you need it most -- during your last few training runs, while planning what you'll eat the day before the marathon, while taking the bus out to the start in Staten Island, or even while making your way through the five boroughs on race day. It's like having your own team of coaches, nutritionists and veteran marathoners to help you run the race of your life -- except it's free.

Today's Inspiration: Mark "The Running Blogfather"

Back in May 2003 I started my running blog as a way to keep track of my exploits, keep motivated, and maybe meet a few people along the way. I looked around and found few other running blogs, though the internet was stacked with personal websites devoted to running (mostly out-of-date and plagued with broken links). Roughly a year later, the running-as-blog thing really exploded. Suddenly, I was overwhelmed with well over 50 running blogs to read--covering all styles of running from runners of all backgrounds and writing styles. The running community in the blogosphere was becoming something of a Wild West, thoroughly decentralized and giddy with the excitement of finding fellow eccentrics. Then came a clear-headed fellow, Mark, who started the Running Blog Family (RBF) Directory, the closest the world will ever come to a comprehensive list of runnings blogs (now passing 450 blogs). Partly from this milestone contribution, but also because of his natural ablity to foster community spirit, Mark was dubbed the "Running Blogfather."

I recently took some time to catch up and was soon amazed at some of the seriously cool things Mark has going:

• RBF Race Calendar
• RBF World Map
• RBF Running Gear

It's about time I gave him a very public THANK YOU!!!

{Update: Mark rightly pointed out that Aaron is a critical partner-in-crime and deserves a lot of the credit.}

Today's Inspiration

Path, originally uploaded by Binary Code.

Unfortunately, this one's not from my running route. It's from Sussex.

30 Minutes: Scotland Heights

I did a twilight run on Monday, a luchtime run on Tuesday, so today I went for the morning run. The morning are getting a bit cool, so I waited until a conference call ended around 9:30 and then headed out the door. The weather is still fantastic, so much so that I weep at the thought of going to work. Otherwise, I feel great. My legs are adapting well to the uptake in running. I've been on the roads more regularly, but I've been careful to not overextend on my runs, taking things as fast or as slow as my body feels like going. Today was a little slower, but my legs felt great at run's end. Before long, I'll set a formal schedule, which currently looks like I'll be running more over the winter than I did in the warmer months. Go figure.

30 Minutes: Near the Office

For the first time ever, I ran during my lunch break. This promises to be the last good week of great weather before things take a chillier turn for a few months. The sky was blue, the air was cool, and the cement sidewalks were, well, extremely hard. This is the biggest drawback to running near my office. I did find a "nature trail," though that wound its way to and over a brook, but inexplicably ended in the middle of the woods with no outlet. Maybe I just need to blaze the last bit for them.