Notes
This was an absolutely fabulous run today! After the weather yesterday and the springy feeling I had in my legs, I was looking forward to and hoping for a longer effort today. The 12.5 was a bit of a mistake, and longer than I had planned, but it worked out just fine.
I finished pilates around 11 and then Yarrow and I chatted about a few things for 20 minutes or so. I felt the hunger beginning to plague my insides, but I knew this was my only chance for a long run today, and I wanted to take advantage of it. I grabbed a handful of almonds to trick my stomach into thinking I had eaten and I headed out the door. Shorts, sports bra, and sunglasses. It was MORE than glorious!! One of the most beautiful days I've ever experienced I think. And the PERFECT temperature for running. 55, an incredibly warm sun, and literally not one cloud in the sky for as far as the eye could see. Decorah, you really outdid yourself this time.
I left campus and headed towards the campground, intending to run up Mink Farm and do an 8-10 mile effort on the gravel. When I ran through the campground and came out near the bridge I saw trout run trail was completely dry and uncovered. It has been months since I've run any part of the bike path, and suddenly the hills and pastures and curves of the trail sounded very inviting. That combined with the fact that the gravel was extremely soft and hard to run on made the decision fairly easy.
I never looked back. The trail was fantastic. I only saw one other person out on it the entire time I was gone. The switchbacks and hills provided good variation in topography, and the bright sun and endless blue sky were absolutely radiant. Great views of the hills and bluffs of D town, and lots of Cows comically sliding about in the mud and raptors on the hunt in the skies. There were just a few shady patches that were still partially snow and ice covered, and I actually laughed out loud to myself a few times at the juxtaposition of running through snow in nothing but shorts and sports bra and sunglasses, and sweating the entire time.
When I finally came out onto the flat by Walmart I realized this run was probably a bit longer than it should have been. I was over 8 miles in and still had about 4 to go. In my spontaneous excitement to run trout run trail I simply didn't' think about the length of the route. I had a moment of weakness when I began to feel fatigued and calculated another half hour to go, but immediately I reminded myself how glorious the day was and I was right back in my little state of utopia. By the end of the run my quads and hip flexors were definitely ready to be done, but the rest of me could have basked in the sunlight for hours.
And to make the whole run even more perfect I walked in to the locker room and found Rhianna MacDonald getting ready to head out on her run. We chatted for a couple minutes before she brought out a pan of homemade chocolate and m&m bars her mom had made, and I enjoyed an absolutely DELICIOUS post-run treat. It tasted divine and was probably necessary fuel. My stomach was definitely angry with me and making its presence known the last 3 (ish) miles, which is understandable considering I had breakfast at 7:30 and it was after 1 by the time I finished.
The treat allowed me about 15 minutes to do some VERY necessary and quality stretching.
Great day to be a runner. :)