Lynn Woods Long Run

While some of my fellow Dungeon Rock Racing teammates were running in the U.S. Snowshoe Nationals at Mt. Hood in Oregon I was alone at the gates of Lynn Woods ready to tackle a long run. As I looked down the fire road into the woods all I could see was melting ice. I had planned to bring my screw shoes in case the roads were still icy but I forgot them in my office at work. I would just have to take it slow. I was actually a little surprised to find that most of my run would be done over snow, ice, water, mud and an occasional dry patch of dirt!

I was only .75 miles into the run when two large adult, white-tailed deer came leaping through the woods about 20 yards ahead of me. They ran across the road and entered the woods on the other side of the road. One continued crashing through the brush but one stopped to keep an eye on me. This one seemed to as curious about me as I was of them.

I walked slowly towards the deer trying to get a better view. The deer remained still, all the while keeping a watchful eye on me. When I got as close as I thought I could without scaring off the deer I stopped and took a few more photos. The deer seemed to be a bit curious but not overly concerned with my presence. The deer was steering me down, almost taunting me alla Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver. I did make a move and the deer ran off. I guess I showed him, her?

Are you talking to me?

I spend most of the next 2.5 hours slogging though mud and water and tippy-toeing my way across long stretches of ice. I approached all the ice fields with extreme caution not wanting a repeat of last week's ankle-breaking experience. No B.S., a friend of mine actually broke her ankle from a fall on an icy trail in Middlesex Fells. This obviously effected my overall pace but I was still happy with my 10:35 average for the 14.4 miles. I was most pleased that I didn't need to take any walking breaks, not even up the hill to stone tower, which I ran twice. I think the snowshoe running I did this winter made me stronger on the hills. I sure hope so because I need help in that area of my running.

Still Frozen

Open Water: A sign of spring on Walden Pond.

I knew I wanted to run around 14 mile but didn't plan out a route in advance. I figured I would wander around on the fire roads until I thought I had done enough running to hit the 14 mile mark by the time I returned to the parking lot. Fortunately, I underestimated the distance and as I neared the finish saw that I was about a mile short. I made a detour off the road and picked up a trail I had never run before. This trail tuned out to be a real jewel! It's single-track undulated up and down and twisted it's way along the banks of Breed Pond, and it was snow and ice free! This is one of the coolest things about trail running. No matter how often you run somewhere there is always something new to discover if you are willing lose your way and let nature guide you.

Mindless Wandering

Elevation Profile

More fresh snow outside. time to shovel!

equipment: brooks cascadia 3, injinji wool socks, race ready shorts, ems long-sleeved shirt, camelbak xc octane.
nourishment: 50oz succeed ultra, 2 packets of gu, 1 succeed s-cap
weather: 50 degrees, wind 17 mph