I'm a trail runner. Hoping to build up enough endurance to do a half-marathon in January, we'll see if it happens. For now, I usually do 30-40 minutes, 3 times a week. In two weeks, I start adding days and distance, to start pushing towards 13.1 miles. I have a great area nearby, with lots of trails that wind in and out of each other. Which gives me a great opportunity to just start running, and know that I'm going to end up back where I started.
Usually.
Except there's apparently this ONE trail that is only connected at one end... the other end comes out more than a few miles later on a road that is easily 3/4 mile from the entrance to the park where I leave my car. Entails running on a road-with-no-shoulder for that bit of distance. Absolutely hellish, especially on a very hot, very sunny afternoon where I don't have a water bottle. Why not? Because I thought I'd be running in the woods for no more than 30 minutes. I shouldn't have NEEDED a water bottle.
This new trail (never ran it before today) turned out to be steeper than anything I've run before. There were moments where I was literally pulling myself up a switchback by holding on to trees.
I tripped, twice. Never running without my cell phone again.
There are some very nice people in town. One of them offered me a glass of water. I gladly accepted - turned out he's retired from the Sheriff's office recently, and his wife has made the same mistake I did, just the other day.
Turns out I can run for nearly a full hour, with only a few moments of "oh gods I can't do this."
Oh I am SO going to hurt tomorrow.
Usually.
Except there's apparently this ONE trail that is only connected at one end... the other end comes out more than a few miles later on a road that is easily 3/4 mile from the entrance to the park where I leave my car. Entails running on a road-with-no-shoulder for that bit of distance. Absolutely hellish, especially on a very hot, very sunny afternoon where I don't have a water bottle. Why not? Because I thought I'd be running in the woods for no more than 30 minutes. I shouldn't have NEEDED a water bottle.
This new trail (never ran it before today) turned out to be steeper than anything I've run before. There were moments where I was literally pulling myself up a switchback by holding on to trees.
I tripped, twice. Never running without my cell phone again.
There are some very nice people in town. One of them offered me a glass of water. I gladly accepted - turned out he's retired from the Sheriff's office recently, and his wife has made the same mistake I did, just the other day.
Turns out I can run for nearly a full hour, with only a few moments of "oh gods I can't do this."
Oh I am SO going to hurt tomorrow.
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