You Can't do THAT on the Road

September 18, 2011 by 6 Comments

Stupid, freaking traffic. It’s 10:40 Sunday morning and I’m running late for a rendezvous with the trail. It’s been a couple of months since I’ve been on a trail run and I can’t wait. But Pleasant Valley Rd. is backed up and I have no idea why. Then, as I crawl toward the 4-way stop at Braddock Rd., I see it. Cox Farms. And I remember that it’s Fall Festival opening weekend. And everyone in Northern Virginia is headed to the festival.

Finally crawl past Braddock and get on the open road. Quick call to my friend Lisa, who I discover missed the turn and is now backtracking, so at least she’s not waiting. I should be there in 5 minutes. But every stinking light on Route 29 is red. Quick call to husband to ask him to pick up kids at 12:30 as there’s no way I’ll make it now. Finally reach trailhead at 11am, 15 minutes late and FUMING. Stupid, freaking traffic. Stupid, freaking red lights.

We start running along Bull Run trail. And within 3 minutes my anger and tension have vanished. Running on the trail, any trail, is as close to a spiritual experience as I’ll get. I can’t describe it. I don’t even notice I’m running. And before I get too carried away and start dropping cliches all over the page, let me show you why running trails is so much better than running on the road.

A tree in the middle of the path makes a great place for a mid-run nap...

Yoga opportunities...

Fun wobbly bridge crossings...oh no, YOU FIRST, Lisa!

Handy place to stash fuel...

...or barf...

...or use as a seat/toilet/don't ask...

There is just no way you can have this much fun on the road. And you don’t have to worry about getting lost. You don’t even need a map or directions. You just follow the markings on the trees:

Roads are for cars. Trails are for fun.

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Wipe Out But Never Wimp Out

April 16, 2011 by 2 Comments

When I talk about trail-running, people often ask me if I fall. Of course I do. Not often, but yes, I do fall once in a while. When I do, I make sure it’s really good. I used to run in Rock Creek Park and a hill there was renamed “Butt Hill” after I fell at the top and slid on my butt all the way to the bottom. I still have a scar from that one.

Yesterday I made sure it was a fall worth talking about. Less than one hour into a 3.5 mile run on Bull Run trail, I slipped while rock-hopping across a river, smacked one leg under the knee, the other above it, and fell butt first up to my waist in the river. What’s worse, I ripped my shorts. ;)

wipe out

Looking at my legs after 3.5 hrs of running

Thankfully, my running partner Adam rescued my sunglasses. What a relief! Actually, it was good that he did because 2 hrs later, the gnats came out in force. Although it was dusk I put my sunglasses back on so they couldn’t fly into my eyes. They still flew into my mouth but I was tired of eating GU anyway…

Once I extracted myself from the river and checked that I hadn’t broken anything, Adam and I continued on our way. My knee was a little sore, which made running downhill hurt, and my other leg was scraped up badly, but the river water had stopped the bleeding. We had run less than 5 miles and I had no plans to wimp out and turn back.

The hills and my knee slowed us down a lot, so when we turned around at 1 hr 45 mins we had only gone 9 miles, but the sun was due to set right at 3.5 hrs from the time we started and I didn’t want to run the trails in the dark. We were working hard but walking the hills like ultrarunners are supposed to, so I wasn’t really concerned about mileage. I did expect to run more than the 17 we ended up running, but the run was for time, not distance, so I didn’t feel the need to go and blast out 3 extra on the road or anything like that. I did say to Adam that I was a little worried about the fact that we will have to run 14 miles further than that in 3 weeks, but I’m hoping that the adrenaline that goes with racing and morning (rather than evening) running will help.

Aside from the scrapes and bruises, which are a wonderful shade of purple right now, my legs aren’t at all sore from the run. When I got home, even though it was 8pm and I was getting cold, I made myself sit in an ice bath. Some people think this is torturous but I have found a way to make it less painful. First, I fill the bath with cold water high enough to cover my legs completely. Then I get in with my clothes still on and a hooded sweatshirt on top. This is important because clothes do take the edge off. I find it especially essential to keep my socks on, as my feet really sting otherwise. Once I’m in, I dump a bag of ice in the bath. Then I grab my hot chocolate (really helps!) and phone and check e-mail, go on Facebook, etc. It’s amazing how quickly those 15 minutes go by!

Once I’m out of the ice, I take a hot shower. The ice helps to remove all the waste products from your legs, while the heat helps pump in fresh blood to promote healing and recovery. Now I just need some warm weather so I can show off my latest war wounds…

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The Most Fun You Can Have While Running, Even When Lost

February 15, 2011 by 2 Comments

So one of the guys in my triathlon group posts that he’s doing his 20 mile run on Monday if anyone would like to join him. He’s running a 3 mile loop…7 times. My first thought is, “that would drive me insane.” I can’t run loops over and over. I can’t get my head around having to do something over and over again. That’s why I never did well on the track.

But for some people, running this way works. It’s actually a variation of my method of breaking a long run into smaller parts. 3 miles is very manageable, keeps him close to home for bathroom/refueling breaks, and enables him to keep an eye on pace.

But it would still drive me crazy. Another thing I cannot do is run far on the W&OD. I know plenty of people who do their long runs on this “trail” and for the life of me I cannot understand why. It’s endless. In summer it’s unshaded and hot as hell. In winter the snow and ice stick to it like glue. It goes on and on forever. To me, it’s the outdoor equivalent of a treadmill. For several years I ran with Reston Runners. They always knew that if a run involved the W&OD, I wouldn’t show. My relationship with it was that bad. I could be having a great run, but the minute I stepped on that trail, all the life would be sucked out of me. I would count the minutes/miles/steps until I could get off. As soon as we left the “trail,” I’d be fine again. These days I can run on it more than I used to, but the thought of it still makes me want to run off into the comfort of the woods…

Don’t even get me started on long treadmill runs….you guys (you know who you are) who do long runs on the dreadmill must have had a prefrontal lobotomy or something. I have no idea how you do it. I would rather have my knees boiled in their own sweat than run double digits on that evil machine.

So what does she like? Before this begins to sound like a whinefest and has you contemplating why I even run in the first place, let me explain what I do love. I love running in new places. I love running past interesting sights. I love running in big cities. I love looking at nature. I particularly enjoy getting off the road and hitting a real trail, i.e., one that’s not paved.

For my long run last weekend I ran on the Bull Run trail. I ran the first 8 miles with friends on a hilly section. Some of the hills are “walkers.” You do not attempt to run these unless you are an idiot or a mountain goat. Or maybe Dean Karnazes. This is great training for my 50K as everyone knows that ultra-running actually involves a good deal of walking, fast, uphill.

After I bid my “normal” running friends adieu, I headed off to the other section of the trail, which is flat. This enabled me to pick up a bit of speed which was good because I was running out of time to get in 16 miles before my team relay where I’d run my final 4 for a nice, round 20. Unfortunately, while I love the trails, I have a disastrous sense of direction and so of course I got lost. On an out and back trail. Really. All I had to do was follow the blue blazes but somehow I managed to make the one wrong turn possible. I had to stop a guy and ask for directions, and even then I kept coming up on the turn and actually missing it. This isn’t the first time I’ve gotten lost. Usually it’s worse because I’m “leading” a group so I get other people lost. I did it in college when I got an entire group of Freshmen lost in the hills of Sheffield. (Sheffield is the hilliest city in Britain. Some of the sidewalks have steps on them. No kidding.) I did it again a year or so ago when I followed the wrong markers when leading my friend Stefan and his visiting-from-out-of-town-sister, turning a 5-mile run into a 12-miler, during which we ran out of water. Oh and did I mention it was summer? And I did it at Manassas Battlefield with my friend Kirsty, who thankfully had looked at a map of the Battlefield before we headed out…

Anyway, the good news is twofold, because when I did finally locate the correct trail, I had run an extra 2 miles and so didn’t need to tack extra miles on once I got back to the car, as had been the original plan. So it all worked out in the end!

So I guess what I’m trying to say is that, for the long run, you have to find out what works for you. Be it loops, a long straight trail with markers such as the W&OD, the treadmill, or, if you’re like me, a scenic route through the woods, perhaps with a map next time, find what works for you.

And, of course, never follow me. ;)

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